BX  9543  .K6  C7  1858 

Memorial  of  the  Rev.  John 
Knox,  D.D 


IVt  E  ]SJ:  O  R  I  A.L 


KEY.   JOHN   KNOX,   D.D. 


PUBLISHED   BY   CONSISTORY. 


John  A.  Gray,  Frinter  and  Stereotyper^ 
16  and  18  Jacob  St,  Fire-Proof  Buildings. 


^./% 


^^ 


JOHN   KNOX, 

BOHN    IN    ADAMS    COIHSTTY,    PA., 


JUNE   17,   1790. 


LICElSrSEID    TO     I'R.EA.CIi,    JXJKTE,    1815. 


OKDAIN'ED     AND     INSTALLED 


COLLEAGUE  PASTOR  OF  THE  REFORMED  PROTESTANT  DUTCH 
CHURCH  IX  THE  CITY  OF  NEW-YORK, 


JULY    16,    1816. 


DIED   JANUARY   8,   1858. 


DEATH 


AND 


FUNERAL    SERVICES. 


TAKEN'    OHIEFLT    PROM 


THE  CHRISTIAN  INTELLIGENCER 


THE  LATE  KEY.  JOHN  OCX,  D.D. 


Ox  Tuesday  of  last  week,  (January  5,)  the  Eev.  Dr.  Ivnox, 
who  had  been  engaged  in  pastoral  visitations,  on  reaching 
home  in  the  after  part  of  the  day,  passed  out  upon  the  back 
piazza  of  his  house,  which  is  inclosed  with  swinging  blinds, 
reaching  nearly  to  the  floor  ;  and  in  some  way  unknown,  he 
was  precipitated  from  an  open  lattice  into  the  yard,  a  distance 
of  five  or  six  feet.  He  struck  with  his  head  upon  the  flagging, 
and  was  taken  up  insensible,  indicating  that  a  severe  concus- 
sion of  the  brain,  if  not  a  fracture  of  the  skull,  had  taken  place. 
The  report  of  the  melancholy  casualty  spread,  as  sad  news  al- 
ways does,  with  great  rapidity,  and  the  utmost  anxiety  was 
felt  in  this  city  and  elsewhere  to  learn  what  the  result  of  the 
injury  would  prove  to  be.  The  worst  apprehensions  were 
soon  realized.  In  spite  of  medical  skill  and  the  tenderest 
watchfulness  of  Christian  friendship.  Dr.  Knox  lay  imtil 
Friday  afternoon  last  in  the  thrall  of  approaching  death. 
From  the  time  of  his  sudden  fall,  up  to  the  moment  of  death, 
he  gave  but  little  evidence  of  consciousness.  When  first  placed 
in  bed,  he  answered  two  or  three  questions  intelligently,  and 
was  heard  in  gentle  and  broken  words  to  say,  ^'  Jesus,  have 
mercy  on  me  ;"  but  very  soon  he  seemed  to  hear  no  sound — 
the  accustomed  voice  of  loved  ones  who  surrounded  him 
brought  back  from  his  lips  no  response.  In  the  grand  and 
solemn  intercourse  of  his  soul  with  God,  he  found  no  place 
nor  ability  to  talk  with  friends. 

Swift  as  the  darting  arrow  came  the  shock  and  the  conquest 
of  death,  and  laid  our  venerable  father,  brother,  friend,  low 
beneath  his  sceptre.     lie  passed  from  the  maturity  of  his  use- 


fulness  and  ripened  vigor  of  honorable  age,  into  the  glory  and 
the  greatness  of  that  immortal  state  for  which  he  had  been 
baptized  and  crowned  by  the  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 

We  feel  ourselves  quite  unable  to  do  justice,  in  a  brief 
sketch  like  this,  to  a  character  so  orbed  in  beauty,  so  symme- 
trical in  its  proportions,  so  chastened  in  the  severe  and  gentle 
virtues  of  manly  force,  so  exuberant  in  the  fruits  of  godly  liv- 
ing, so  rich  in  all  the  attributes  of  private  and  official  worth, 
as  was  the  character  of  Dr.  Knox.  Yet,  for  the  love  w^e  bore 
him,  we  are  impelled  to  draw  in  rapid  outline  some  features  of 
tliat  character  whom  all  admired,  and  few  will  ever  actualize 
in  their  personal  growth. 

Dr.  Knox  w^as  a  native  of  Pennsylvania.  He  was  born  near 
Gettysburgh,  in  the  year  1790,  graduated  at  Dickinson  Col- 
lege, studied  Theology  with  the  Kev.  J.  M.  Mason,  D.D.,  one 
of  whose  daughters  he  subsequently  married.  Forty-two  years 
ago,  he  was  ordained  as  one  of  the  pastors  of  the  Collegiate 
Reformed  Dutch  Church  of  this  city,  being  then  in  the  27th 
year  of  his  age.  Forty-two  years  ago !  What  changes  have 
jostled  and  crowded  and  overwhelmed  each  other  in  this  city 
within  this  period  !  When  Dr.  Knox  begun  his  ministry,  the 
old  Wall  street  Church  stood  in  its  stately  strength.  The 
Merchants'  Exchange  had  not  yet  overshadow^ed  Garden  street, 
where  the  church  of  Dr.  Mathews  stood.  The  Middle  Dutch 
Clmrch,  now  the  Post-Office,  was  then  the  centre  of  Dutch  af- 
fections. Franklin  Square  w^as  then  the  up-town  of  the 
wealthier  merchants  and  of  the  distinguished  citizens.  Then 
Podgers,  and  Pomeyn,  and  Milner,  and  a  host  of  men  illus- 
trious in  their  day,  and  embalmed  in  fragrant  memories  now, 
occupied  the  pulpits  of  this  city,  and  adorned  its  civil  and 
social  life.  They  have  passed  away.  The  dim  shadow  of  the 
all-engulfing  future  has  received  them.  Their  spirits  have 
gone  where  the  mighty  rest.  Their  graves  are  almost  for- 
irotten  or  unnoticed  now. 

In  the  private  individuality  of  his  character,  Dr.  Knox  was 


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the  model  of  a  Christian  gentleman.  Ko  hurried  impulses,  no 
warping  prejudices,  no  sharp  dogmatism,  no  selfish  indiffer- 
ence prevented  him  from  exhibiting,  at  all  times,  and  on  all 
occasions,  the  calm,  equable,  humble,  and  dignified  temper  of 
a  man  who  respected  himself  enough  to  respect  others.  Kind 
without  an  air  of  condescension,  truthful  without  an  ostenta- 
tion of  frankness,  warm-hearted  without  credulity,  scrupulously 
lionorable,  and  pimctiliously  exact  in  the  use  of  words,  and  in 
the  performance  of  his  promises,  he  won  the  friendship  of 
those  who  knew  him,  and  kept  that  friendship  until  the 
last. 

As  a  preacher.  Dr.  Knox  lacked  what  is  commonly  styled 
eloquence  in  delivery,  but  his  manner  had  the  best  element  of 
eloquence  —  which  was  persuasiveness.  Never  boisterous, 
never  resorting  to  tricks  of  art,  or  follies  of  pantomime ;  he 
presented  the  truth  in  a  clear,  bold,  convincing,  and  winning 
form,  so  that  his  success,  in  the  high  purpose  of  a  Christian 
minister,  was  far  greater  than  that  of  more  showy  and  fussy 
men.  The  matter  of  his  sermons  was,  of  course,  always 
evangelical,  and  this,  as  we  think,  is  the  chief  secret  of  his 
long  continuance  in  one  charge,  and  of  his  undiminished  in- 
fluence throughout  his  pastorate.  Other  men  have  come  and 
gone,  attracting  and  losing  crowds,  while  he  kept  on  the  even 
tenor  of  his  Christian  way,  preaching  the  Gospel,  and  nothing 
but  the  Gospel,  to  the  people  whom  he  loved.  The  example 
of  such  a  man,  and  of  such  a  ministry,  is  worth  very  much  to 
a  city  like  this,  where  every  species  of  ingenuity  is  tried  to 
supplement  the  Gospel,  with  charms  and  devices  of  merely 
human  skill. 

As  a  philanthropist.  Dr.  Knox  occupied  a  higli  position. 
He  was  a  trustee  of  Columbia  College,  in  this  city  ;  of  Kutgers 
College,  in  ]^ew- Jersey;  of  the  Leake  and  Watt  Orphan 
Asylum,  Chairman  of  the  Publishing  Committee  of  the 
American  Tract  Society,  and  a  member  of  several  Boards  of 
our  own  Church.     In  all  these  public  relations,  he  evinced  a 


10 

steady  diligence,  and  lent  liis  influence  and  his  wise  counsels 
to  the  progress  of  their  welfare. 

In  behalf  of  Rutgers  College,  he  devoted  at  several  times 
especial  efforts  to  aid  the  improvement  of  its  finances,  and 
secure  to  that  institution  the  best  affections  of  the  Church.  In 
connection  with  his  venerable  friend,  Abraham  Van  Nest, 
Esq.,  on  one  occasion,  he  raised  the  College  from  great  embar- 
rassment, and  proved,  in  that  regard,  its  almost  saviour.  But 
we  must  not  enlarge.  We  saw  Dr.  Knox  on  the  Monday  pre- 
ceding the  fatal  Tuesday,  and  he  then  rejoiced  in  the  posses- 
sion of  health,  and  said  that  "  he  was  growing  old,  he  knew, 
and  yet  he  felt  but  few  of  the  infirmities  of  age."  Ah  !  he  had 
discovered  and  obeyed  the  great  law  of  health,  which  is  none 
other  than  the  pursuit  of  worthy  ends,  by  worthy  means,  with 
a  high  Christian  purpose.  Dr.  Knox  was  always  at  work,  and 
when  the  Master  said,  "  Come  up  hither,"  he  laid  aside  the 
implements  of  his  earthly  toil,  and  went  up  to  rest. 

THE    FUNERAL. 

The  funeral  was  attended  first  at  the  house  of  the  deceased, 
in  Fourth  street  (where  the  Kev.  Dr.  McElroy,  the  life-long  in- 
timate friend  of  the  deceased,  delivered  a  short  address,  and  of- 
fered prayer.)  and  thence  to  the  Lafayette  Place  Church.  Mili- 
tary demonstrations  and  the  pompous  parade  of  funerals  in 
which  political  elements  supplant  all  decent  grief  are  common. 
But  we  have  never  witnessed  such  an  assemblage,  of  such 
people  as  came  to  do  homage  to  the  memory  and  the  good 
name  of  Dr.  Knox. 

His  remains  were  borne  by  honorable  men,  who  walked  re- 
verently beside  their  sacred  burden.  The  coffin  was  clothed 
with  black  cloth,  fastened  with  silver  screws,  with  handles  on 
the  sides,  and  bore  upon  its  lid  a  plate  with  the  name  and  age 
of  the  deceased.  Following  the  coffin  were  the  Rev.  Drs.  De 
Witt,  Yermilye,  and  Chambers — his  bereaved  colleagues — his 


11 

family,  the  Consistory  of  the  church,  trustees  of  various  insti- 
tutions, members  of  societies  with  whom  the  deceased  was 
connected,  while  hundreds  of  clergymen  of  every  evangelical 
denomination  preceded  the  remains. 

Upon  entering  the  church  an  involuntary  feeling  of  awe 
must  have  fallen  upon  all.  The  desk  from  which  Dr.  Knox 
had  so  long  and  so  well  preached  was  shrouded  in  black,  and 
stood  a  mute  and  unconscious  mourner,  and  solemn  monitor  as 
well.  The  posts  of  the  lamps  had  hidden  their  golden 
splendors  beneath  their  sombre  drapery,  and  the  sides,  rear, 
and  front  of  the  deep  recess  were  veiled  with  weeds  of  sorrow. 
The  fronts  of  the  galleries  were  also  draped,  and  the  organ 
trembled  in  black  while  it  wailed  sobbingly  and  tenderly  a  re- 
quiem for  the  dead.  The  congregation  within  the  church 
contained  most  of  the  distinguished  divines,  scholars,  jurists, 
and  many  of  the  aged  inhabitants  of  the  city.  There  were 
men  whom  the  world  honors,  come  to  pay  their  homage  to  a 
Christian  minister,  whose  highest  and  noblest  distinction  was 
that  he  lived  and  preached  the  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ.  Such 
a  spectacle  contained  more  than  libraries  hold  of  instruction 
on  the  true  dignity  and  real  honor  of  life. 
The  pall-bearers  were : 

Eev.  Dr.  Beerian,        of  the  Episcopal      Church. 
'^         Phillips,  ^'       Presbyterian       " 

«         Bangs,  "       Methodist  " 

"  "Williams,  "       Baptist  " 

"         Fekris,  "       Dutch  '^ 

"         McCaktee,  "       Presbyterian      " 

"         Hardeneergh,    "       Dutch  " 

"         Skinner,  "       Presbyterian     " 

llis  physicians,  who  followed  the  remains,  were  Drs.  Gnr- 
don  Buck,  John  Watson,  Edward  L.  Beadle. 

The  exercises  in  the  church  commenced  with  the  funeral  an- 
them by  the  choir :  "  I  heard  a  voice  saying  unto  me,  Write 
from  henceforth,  Blessed  are  the  dead  wlio  die  in  the  Lord." 


12 

The  following  rich  and  most  impressive  prayer  was  then 
offered  by  the  Eev.  Dr.  Spring,  the  senior  pastor  of  this  city : 

PRAYER   BY    THE    REV.    DR.    SPRING. 

O  Lord  God  !  who  hast  laid  the  foundations  of  the  earth, 
and  the  heavens  are  the  work  of  thy  hands.  They  shall 
perish,  but  thou  remainest,  and  they  all  shall  wax  old,  as  doth 
a  garment,  and  as  a  vesture  shalt  thou  fold  them  up,  and  they 
shall  be  changed  ;  but  thou  art  the  same,  and  to  thy  years 
there  is  no  end.  And  this  is  our  joy,  almighty  God,  under 
those  dark  dispensations  of  thy  providence  which  so  fre- 
quently overshadow  our  world,  and  eclipse  the  hopes  of  thy 
people.  The  Lord  liveth,  and  blessed  be  our  Eock  ;  and  let 
the  God  of  our  salvation  be  exalted.  The  Lord  God  omnipo- 
tent reigneth,  and  let  the  earth  rejoice.  Yea,  let  the  islands 
of  the  sea  and  the  trees  of  the  field  clap  their  hands,  because 
the  Lord  reigneth.  Thou  art  light,  and  in  thee  is  no  darkness 
at  all.  Thou  clothest  thyself  with  light  as  with  a  garment, 
and  dost  array  thyself  in  majesty  and  excellence.  Yet,  O  God ! 
while  we  have  perfect  confidence  in  the  spotless  rectitude  of 
thy  nature,  and  in  the  wisdom  and  goodness  and  faithfulness 
of  all  thy  dispensations,  clouds  and  darkness  are  often  round 
about  us.  Justice  and  judgment  are  the  habitations  of  thy 
throne.  Lord,  we  would  appear  before  thee,  while  we  suppli- 
cate thy  favor  under  the  bereaving  providence  which  sum- 
mons us  to  this  house  of  mourning ;  we  would  remember  who 
it  is  that  speaks  to  us,  that  the  God  of  all  the  earth  is  speak- 
ino:  to  us  from  the  dark  cloud.  We  would  be  still,  and  know 
that  it  is  God.  Thou  hast  a  right  to  judge  us  ;  and  if  thou, 
Lord,  shouldest  mark  iniquity  against  us,  we  could  not  answer 
thee  for  one  of  a  thousand.  By  one  man  sin  entered  the 
world,  and  death  by  sin  ;  and  so  death  passed  upon  all  men, 
for  that  all  have  sinned.  And  we  bow  before  the  sentence. 
We  must  bow  before  it,  we  know ;  and  we  ask  for  grace  to 
bow  before  it  cheerfully.     O  Lord !  we  would  not  be  found, 


13 

even  under  such  a  dispensation  as  this,  contending  with  the 
Almighty.  Who  ever  hardened  himself  against  God,  and 
prospered  ?  We  would  rather  lie  down  at  thy  footstool,  ac- 
cept the  punishment  of  our  iniquity,  and  magnify  the  God  of 
heaven,  and  give  him  glory,  before  our  feet  stumble  on  the 
dark  mountains,  and  we  look  for  light,  and  there  is  darkness. 
What  shall  we  say  unto  thee,  in  view  of  this  ?  We  look  back 
on  all  thy  dealings  with  thy  beloved  servant,  and  see  so  much 
to  be  thankful  for  in  thy  goodness  and  mercy  toward  him, 
that  while  we  come  trembling  and  with  holy  fear  before  thy 
throne,  our  lips  shout  praises.  With  thankful  homage  to  thy 
will,  we  recall  thy  loving-kindness  to  this  people,  through  the 
instrumentality  of  their  faithful  pastor,  whose  mortal  remains 
are  ready  to  be  consigned  to  the  clods  of  the  valley.  We 
thank  thee  for  permitting  him  to  preach  the  everlasting  Gos- 
pel so  long,  and  with  so  much  success.  We  thank  thee  for 
the  seals  of  his  ministry  which  thou  hast  given  him.  We 
bless  thee  for  the  testimony  which  these  have  borne  to  his 
usefulness  in  the  kingdom  of  thy  dear  Son.  O  Lord  God ! 
we  thank  thee  for  all  those  precious  hopes  which  were  often 
brought  home  to  his  own  heart,  in  uttering  the  truths  which 
he  was  permitted  to  proclaim  to  his  fellow-men.  And  though 
thou  hast  called  him  away  in  a  manner  which  did  not  allow 
of  his  testifying  on  his  dying-bed  to  the  preciousness  of  the 
truths  to  which  he  gave  such  practical  testimony  in  his  long- 
continued  life,  yet  we  have  cause  to  bless  thee  for  thy  kind- 
ness to  him  ;  and  we  ask  thee  to  bless  this  scene  to  our  own 
hearts.  Especially  remember  the  afflicted  family  from  whom 
thou  hast  taken  a  father  and  friend.  Put  under  them  thine 
everlasting  arms,  and  enable  them  to  see  that  the  father's  God 
is  also  the  God  of  the  children.  Hemember  this  whole  peo- 
ple, and  pour  out  thy  Spirit  upon  them.  Grant  that  those, 
who  have  heard  and  thankfully  received  thy  trutli  from  the 
lips  of  thy  servant,  may  remember  their  obligations  to  the 
God  of  grace.     And  if  there  be  any  who  have  long  heard 


14: 

and  long  rejected  the  Gospel  of  the  great  salvation,  as  deliv- 
ered by  him,  may  this  be  the  hour  when  some  arrow  from  thy 
quiver  may  penetrate  their  hearts,  that  they  may  bow  at  thy 
footstool  while  it  is  called  to-day.     Remember  this  church, 
which  thou  hast  blessed  in  the  days  of  the  past ;  for  while  we 
have  stood  by,  and  watched  one  and  another  of  its  ministers 
to  the  grave,  the  Great  Shepherd  has  watched  over  it,  and 
has  said  :  I  will  never  forsake  thee.     Teach  them  with  prayer- 
ful minds  to  look  up  to  thee,  to  know  what  thou  wouldest 
have  them  to  do.     Guide  them  by  thine  eye,  and  bless  them 
by  the  influence  of  thy  grace.      May  this  event  not  come 
without  its  solemn  lesson  of  instruction  to  those  who  minister 
at  the  altar.     May  we  realize  the  high  privilege  to  stand  be- 
fore multitudes  of  our  fellow-creatures,  and  testify  to  the  Gos- 
pel of  the  grace  of  God.     We  thank  thee,  that  the  nearer  we 
draw  to  the  grave,  and  the  more  frequently  we  see  it  open  be- 
fore us,  the  more  valuable  that  privilege  appears  to  us.     May 
we  prize  it  more  and  more.     May  we,  from  whom  thou  hast 
taken  a  brother  in  the  ministry,  keep  our  lamps  trimmed,  and 
be  ready  for  the  coming  of  the  Son  of  Man,  not  knowing  at 
what  hour  we  may  be  called  to  meet  him.     While  we  declare 
the  unsearchable  riches  of  the  grace  of  Christ,  make  it  pre- 
cious to  our  own  hearts.     While  we  proclaim  the  obligations 
of  thy  law,  may  we  welcome  them  ourselves.     While  we 
warn  others  to  flee  from  the  wrath  to  come,  let  us  ever  re- 
member that  the  day  is  coming  when  we  ourselves  shall  stand 
before  the  Son  of  Man  with  them,  not  to  preach,  but  to  be 
judged ;  to  listen  to  the  sentence  which  shall  separate  the 
righteous  from  the  wicked ;  and  may  it  be  our  happy  lot, 
through  thy  abounding  grace  in  Jesus  Christ,  to  hear  the  wel- 
come, little  as  we  deserve  it,  ''  Well  done,  good  and  faithful 
servant,  enter  thou  into  the  joy  of  thy  Lord."     And  now, 
blessed  God,  as  a  collection  of  dying  creatures,  we  come  to 
thy  throne,  before  we  deposit  the  dust  of  our  beloved  brother 
in  its  last  resting-place.     Teach  us  how  frail  we  are.     Teach 


15 

lis  to  number  our  days,  so  that  we  may  apply  our  hearts  unto 
wisdom  ;  to  bring  before  us  the  great  realities  of  the  eternal 
world,  in  all  their  vastness,  in  all  their  preciousness,  and  in 
all  their  intimate  relations  to  our  own  souls.  God  of  grace, 
grant,  we  humbly  beseech  thee,  that  if  human  life  with  an}^ 
of  us  has  been  trifled  with,  if  duties  have  been  forgotten,  that 
this  may  be  the  last  hour  in  which  it  shall  be  so.  If  we  have 
not  devoted  our  services  to  these  dying  and  living  men,  may 
we  remember  the  great  maxim  :  l^one  of  us  liveth  to  himself, 
or  dieth  to  himself;  but  whether  we  live,  we  live  unto  the 
Lord  ;  whether  we  die,  we  die  unto  the  Lord  ;  that  living  or 
dying,  we  may  be  with  the  Lord.  May  we  realize  the  solem- 
nities of  that  hour,  when  in  the  great  congregation  of  the 
universe,  we  shall  stand  at  the  divine  bar.  Prepare  us.  Lord, 
for  that  solemn  hour,  for  the  sake  of  Jesus  our  Redeemer,  to 
whom,  with  the  Father  and  the  Holy  Spirit,  be  endless  praise. 
Amen. 

Tlie  Eev.  Dr.  Bethune  read  selected  passages  of  Scripture. 
The  hymn  commencing, 

"  Hear  what  the  voice  from  heaven  proclaims 
For  all  the  pious  dead," 

was  sung  by  the  choir  ;  when  the  Rev.  Dr.  Yan  Yranken,  the 
Senior  Professor  of  the  Theological  Seminary  in  ITew-Bruns- 
wick,  addressed  the  audience  as  follows  : 

BEV.    DR.  VAN   VRANKEN'S   ADDRESS. 

Death  is  always  productive  of  intense  emotions,  because  it 
is  always  attended  by  everlasting  issues  of  glory  or  of  shame 
to  the  dying.  It  speaks  a  language  which  every  human  heart 
should  hear  and  feel.  And  the  effect  of  it  we  see  in  the 
domestic  circle,  in  tears  and  groans,  and  broken  hearts,  and 
crushed  spirits,  and  the  saddest  of  all  earthly  desolations ;  and 
when  we  visit  the  house  of  mourning,  although  we  go  as  min- 


16 

isters  of  consolation,  we  enter  softly,  and  come  away  softly. 
For  death  has  produced  a  feeling  of  solemnity  and  sadness 
with  which  nothing  else  would  correspond.  Every  thing  that 
we  witness  there  should  be  sober,  and  sad,  and  tender.  But 
if  we  go  beyond  the  bounds  of  the  domestic  circle,  and  asso- 
ciate the  dead  with  the  living  interests  of  the  world  ;  and 
even  if  we  connect  him  with  the  cause  of  education  ;  if  we 
connect  him  with  the  moral  improvement  of  the  world  ;  if 
we  connect  him  with  the  life  and  witli  the  sorrows  of  the  dis- 
tressed ;  if  we  connect  him  with  the  Church  of  God,  with  our 
ministry  and  its  solemn  ordinances,  with  our  preached  Gospel, 
and  with  all  that  renders  sacred  that  instrument  of  God's  ap- 
pointment, with  our  counsels,  with  our  plans,  our  efforts  to 
improve  the  condition  of  the  world  and  to  save  the  souls  of 
men — then  death  speaks  to  a  larger  circle,  and  in  a  louder 
tone.  The  whole  community  is  made  to  hear,  and  an  effect  is 
often  produced  like  the  one  which  we  now  witness  in  this  vast 
assemblage,  in  these  crowded  streets,  in  this  involuntary  hom- 
age to  the  worth  of  a  departed  servant  of  God. 

And  if  he  has  extended  his  relations  beyond  the  Church,  to 
institutions  such  as  are  designed  to  promote  the  great  work  of 
evangelizing  the  world,  our  views  are  still  widened,  and  the 
whole  community  and  society  at  large  feel  that  death  has 
been  in  the  place  ;  and  how  many  hearts  are  made  to  bleed  ! 

But  we  may  feel  more  deeply  the  visitation  of  death,  if  we 
view  any  one  individual  case  in  connection  with  others  of 
similar  character,  and  closely  corresponding  in  time.  If  we 
witness  the  fall  of  an  armor-bearer  in  the  hosts  of  God,  and 
then  have  to  recollect  for  a  moment,  and  our  memory  reminds 
us  that  another  and  another  have  just  fallen  in  the  same  glo- 
rious cause,  we  feel — if  we  have  hearts  to  rejoice  in  the  pros- 
perity of  Zion,  hearts  to  rejoice  in  the  lively  ministration  of 
God's  truth — we  feel  more  deeply  still.  Tliree  or  four  short 
mouths  have  sufficed  to  lay  three  of  our  standard-bearers  low, 


three  of  our  miglity  men.     In  the  last  four  months,  Ludlow, 
Polhemus,  and  Knox  have  fallen ! 

If  the  preservation  and  the  perpetuity  of  the  Church  de- 
pended upon  any  human  arm,  successive  bereavements  like 
these  might  well  make  us  tremble  on  viewing  what  we  have 
lost ;  for  we  have  few  such  men,  the  world  has  few  such  men, 
to  spare.  But  faith  must  take  the  place  of  emotion,  and  tlien 
our  fears  pass  away.  Let  it  be  that  God  has  taken  our  strong 
and  valiant  men  out  of  the  field  of  action  ;  yet  every  one  he 
has  preserved  just  so  long  as  was  necessary  to  accomplish  the 
end  which  he  designed  in  their  vocation.  And  when  their 
work  is  done,  and  not  until  it  is  done,  will  he  call  them  to 
their  eternal  reward.  In  the  mean  time,  let  all  who  love  the 
Church  of  God  look  to  our  exalted  King,  and  rejoice  in  this, 
that,  because  he  lives,  we  shall  live  also. 

I  am  not  called  upon  to  give  you  any  thing  like  a  character 
of  our  departed  brother.  That  duty  will  fall  to  other  hands — 
to  one  who  was  associated  with  him  in  the  holiest  offices  of 
religion,  in  the  tenderest  sympathies,  and  in  a  continued 
course  of  friendship  that  has  served  only  to  make  kindred 
hearts  mingle  into  unison.  "What  the  effect  of  the  represent- 
ation upon  you  may  be,  will  depend  entirely  on  the  state  of 
the  conflict  in  your  hearts,  between  pleasant  memories  and  a 
consciousness  of  present  bereavement. 

And  yet,  I  can  hardly  come  to  approach,  and  to  look  for  a 
moment  at  the  wide  chasm  which  has  been  created  by  the  loss 
of  our  departed  brother,  without  desiring  to  know  what  it  was 
that  enabled  him  to  hold  out  so  long,  and  accomplish  so  much. 
I  feel  that  he  was  truly  great.  It  can  not  be  said  of  him,  while 
his  mind  and  hands  were  occupied  with  a  variety  of  things 
connected  with  the  advancement  of  the  kingdom  of  Christ, 
that  he  was  one  who  did  a  little  here,  and  a  little  there,  and 
not  much  in  the  aggregate.  Our  departed  brother's  exertions 
not  merely  extended  over  a  wide  field,  but  they  were  efficient, 
and  such  as  called  forth  the  admiration  and  blessings  of  those 


18 

who  loved  the  interests  he  endeavored  to  advance.  The  fact 
that  he  filled  so  large  a  space — the  fact  that  he  was  engaged 
in  so  much,  and  that  he  accomplished  so  much,  proves  that 
this  community,  as  well  as  the  whole  Church,  has  lost  no  com- 
mon man.  There  must  have  been  in  him  every  element  of 
greatness,  an  enlightened  understanding,  practical  wisdom, 
earnestness  in  his  application  to  all  that  he  undertook.  He 
was  fervent  in  spirit,  full  of  zeal  for  the  glory  of  God,  and  the 
advancement  of  the  Redeemer's  kingdom.  Under  the  influ- 
ence of  these  high  sentiments,  and  with  the  industry  and 
application  which  marked  our  departed  brother,  he  must  have 
made  himself  felt  in  society,  and  felt  only  for  good. 

The  attributes  which  made  him  so  successful  in  his  various 
departments,  when  employed  in  his  office  as  a  minister  of  the 
religion  of  Jesus,  would  lead  us  to  look  for  every  thing  that 
the  heart  of  a  Christian  can  desire.  A  faitliful  exhibition  of 
God's  truth,  a  prayerful  preparation  for  the  services  of  the 
sanctuary,  watchfulness  for  the  souls  of  his  flock,  a  godly  walk 
and  conversation  exhibited  day  by  day  before  them,  testified 
to  the  power  of  the  religion  which  he  professed,  so  that  those 
who  saw  him  "  took  knowledge  of  him,  that  he  had  been  with 
Jesus." 

I  scarcely  know  of  any  honor  to  be  enjoyed  by  a  man  de- 
parting from  the  world  greater  than  that  which  he  enjoyed  in 
the  homage  and  veneration  paid  him,  and  in  the  deeply  afiiicted 
spirits  of  this  vast  community. 

The  excellence  and  the  extent  of  his  influence  for  so  many 
years  perhaps  is  now  felt  to  be  more  than  would  otherwise 
have  been  imagined.  That  influence  is  felt  in  the  very  city 
that  had  the  blessing  of  such  a  man  walking  through  its  streets, 
visiting  house  after  house,  administering  consolation,  giving, 
instruction  to  the  ignorant,  going  to  places  of  mourning,  and 
there  mingling  his  sorrow  with  theirs  whom  God  had  afiiicted. 
The  influence,  I  say,  of  a  man  like  that  must  make  him  a 
blessing  to  society  to  a  degree  almost  incalculable.    And  per- 


19 

haps  if  we  look  around  we  shall  hardly  find  another  man 
whose  presence  would  be  more  missed  than  his. 

This  Church  for  forty-two  years  has  enjoyed  his  ministry  ; 
and  the  results  of  each  year's  successive  services  of  the  forty- 
two  have  only  been  to  increase  the  veneration  of  the  flock  for 
their  pastor ;  have  only  been  to  establish  him  more  firmly  in 
the  affections  of  their  hearts,  whilst  his  general  deportment, 
and  the  general  influence  which  he  has  exerted,  have  tended 
to  establish  his  reputation  far  and  wide  as  a  man  wdio  stood,  I 
had  almost  said,  alone.  For  there  are  few  that  maintain  a 
consistency  like  his  ;  few  that  exert  so  hallowed  an  influence 
as  that  of  his  daily  walk  and  conversation  ;  few  are  looked  to 
with  the  confidence  felt  in  his  principles  and  his  integrity  ;  few 
are  regarded  so  highly,  as  to  the  safety  with  which  any  cause 
may  be  committed  to  their  guardianship. 

It  would  be  something  very  pleasant  if  we  were  able  now 
to  gather  up  the  results  of  a  life  like  that  of  our  departed 
friend.  What  a  gathering  this  would  be  !  If  we  could  only 
follow  out  the  direct  and  indirect  influences  of  a  life  so  loner, 
so  holy,  so  diligent,  so  earnest  in  the  cause  of  God  !  Witnesses 
would  arise  from  every  quarter  to  testify  to  what  they  have 
experienced  through  him,  directly  or  indirectly.  And  the 
number  would  be  multiplied,  and  the  facts  aggregated,  until 
we  should  be  astonished  that  God  should  connect  with  the 
exertions  of  one  single  man  results  so  important  as  these.  But 
though  we  can  neither  see  nor  hear  these  results,  all  of  them 
are  written  in  the  book  of  God's  remembrance — not  only  the 
direct  results,  but  all  remotely  connected  with  them — all  the 
secret  influences  which  distill,  like  the  dew  of  evening,  from 
such  a  man  as  the  departed,  operating  silently  on  the  hearts 
of  men,  unconsciously  alike  to  him  and  them.  For  when  the 
mind  is  brought  into  contact  with  an  object  so  venerated,  it 
catches  at  least  a  portion  of  its  spirit,  or  there  will  be  a 
diminution  of  the  contrary  spirit,  and  a  predisposition  formed 


20 

to  act  like  him  who  enjoyed  so  much  of  the  confidence  and 
the  admiration  of  the  community. 

REV.    DE.    HUTTON'S   ADDRESS. 

The  Eev.  Dr.  Hutton  said  :  When  God  speaks  to  us  by  a 
visitation  such  as  that  which  has  called  us  here  to-day,  it  seems 
to  me  almost  like  presumption  for  man  to  raise  his  voice. 
Death  has  sounds  of  its  own,  which  are  always  touching,  and 
impressive,  and  forcible.  Its  pale  ensign  in  the  countenance 
of  our  friend  whom  we  now  mourn,  and  whom  death  has 
stricken  down,  the  ties  which  are  broken,  never  again  to  be 
united — there  are  a  thousand  things  in  which  death  speaks  to 
us,  and  speaks  most  powerfully.  The  house  into  which  it  enters 
is  always  a  house  of  mourning — the  family  into  which  it  enters 
is  always  broken — the  home  or  the  Church  into  which  it  enters 
is  robed  in  blackness  and  mourning,  l^otwithstanding  all  the 
light  which  our  blessed  religion  throws  around  the  grave,  still 
death  always  brings  mourning  in  its  train. 

And,  brethren,  God  meant  that  it  should.  God  meant  that  death 
should  never  come  without  touching  our  hearts  and  afi*ecting  our 
feelings.  He  wants  us  to  mourn  when  death  strikes  near  to  us. 
You  remember  our  Divine  Lord  and  Redeemer,  when  he  stood 
on  one  occasion,  as  we  are  standing  to-day,  beside  the  grave 
of  a  friend — lie  w^ept.  And  if  I  could  consult  my  own  feelings 
alone,  I  would  follow  his  blessed  example,  and  weep  now.  And 
I  feel  that  all  who  knew  our  departed  friend  would  join  with 
me. 

But  on  that  same  occasion,  when  our  beloved  Lord  stood  by 
the  grave  of  his  friend,  you  may  remember  he  uttered  these 
words  :  "  Whosoever  believeth  in  me,  though  he  were  dead, 
yet  shall  he  live."  And  I  can  not  help  the  thought,  even  amid 
all  this  drapery  of  mourning.  I  feel  that  our  departed  father 
and  brother  lives.  Yes,  he  lives!  Whenever  the  thoughts 
are  recalled  to  the  fact  of  the  loss  which  we  have  experienced, 


21 

(and  oil !  how  many  things  recall  that  loss ! — we  can  hardly 
move  out  in  the  street  without  missing  his  kindly  voice  and 
his  loving  hand;  we  do  feel  his  loss,)  yet  I  can  not  but  feel  that 
he  lives.  I  can  not  keep  my  heart  around  his  coffin — it  rises 
to  the  brighter  and  the  better  world.  Even  to-day,  gathered 
as  we  are  in  the  house  of  our  God,  God's  own  house,  I  recall 
the  words  read  a  few  moments  since  in  our  hearing  :  God  has 
prepared  a  place  for  us — "  in  my  Father's  house  are  many 
mansions." 

I  can  not  but  contrast  this  scene  here  on  earth,  which  this 
event  has  produced,  with  the  one  which  it  produces  on  high — 
the  double  aspect  in  which  the  death  of  our  departed  friend  is 
thus  presented.  The  aspect  here  I  need  not  speak  of  The 
tears  which  have  fallen,  the  sighs  which  are  heard,  the  anguish 
of  soul  which  those  most  nearly  connected  with  our  departed 
brother  feel — all  tell  us  what  the  scene  is  here  on  earth. 
Friends,  seek  to  cast  your  eyes  to  the  brighter  world.  Seek 
to  realize  the  scene  presented  there  at  the  death  of  our  de- 
parted brother.  Said  our  Divine  Master:  "  Father,  I  will  that 
my  servant  be  with  me  where  I  am."  'T  was  the  voice  of 
Jesus,  and  all  heaven  was  interested  in  it.  And  at  the  call  of 
that  voice  the  spirit  of  our  departed  brother  entered  the  bright 
and  the  glorious  world.  There  was  joy  in  heaven,  though 
there  was  sorrow  on  earth.  The  harp  of  David  resounds  with 
a  new  song ;  the  strings  of  Isaiah's  harp  sound  with  a  new 
joy;  for  a  bright  and  glorious  servant  of  God  has  come  home. 

Imagine  our  dear  father  and  brother,  who,  for  forty-two 
years,  has  been  ministering  in  this  Church,  watching  by  the 
bed-side  of  the  dying,  and  helping  them  through  to  their  bright 
abode.  Here  his  sad  congregation  gather,  and  weep  as  they 
remember  him.  But  oh !  the  cono;reo:ation  of  the  saints  to 
whom  he  has  ministered  while  here  !  How  different  the  con- 
gregation in  the  brighter  world  appears  from  this.  They 
gather  around  him  to  welcome  him  home  ;  they  recognize  him 
as  their  pastor  and  friend  when  they  were  on  earth.     Oh ! 


22 

methinks,  sweet,  and  kind,  and  gentle  as  is  our  remembrance 
of  the  kindness  of  our  friend,  with  w^hat  great  joy  must  they 
be  filled,  and  with  what  rapture  he  will  be  greeted  there ! 
With  what  pleasure  and  gratitude  must  he  take  the  crown  of 
his  rejoicing,  and  lay  it  at  his  Saviour's  feet,  with  the  wonder- 
ing acknowledgment :  "  Why,  Lord,  have  I  been  made  to  re- 
ceive such  great  joy  ?" 

And  now,  dear  friends,  why  do  I  thus  bring  to  your  view 
these  two  aspects  of  the  death  of  our  departed  brother  ?  Why 
do  I  lead  your  thoughts  to  that  brighter  world,  in  contrast 
with  this  ?  Is  it  to  make  the  present  seem  the  darker  ?  Oh  ! 
no.  Kemember  that  this  vision,  which  our  Father  gives  us,  of 
that  brighter  and  better  world,  is  the  vision  given  in  Jesus 
dying  to  save  sinners.  It  is  through  this  Almighty  Saviour  that 
we  are  permitted  to  indulge  in  the  vision  of  that  happiness  in 
which  we  believe  he  now  mingles.  And  though  the  scenes  of 
death  be  dark  and  sad  here,  yet  all  the  light  which  we  enjoy 
under  these  circumstances  is  the  light  reflected  from  the 
brighter  world.  I  present  before  you  this  scene,  because,  now 
he  is  dead,  I  desire  to  do  that,  in  which,  and  for  which,  he  la- 
bored all  his  life.  I  am  presenting  to  you  Christ  crucified — 
the  only  hope  and  the  only  help  of  our  fallen  world.  Methinks 
that  if  you  will  only  let  your  minds  follow  me  to  that  brighter 
world,  you  will  find  that  there  is  a  louder  call  made  now  by 
our  deceased  brother,  in  the  name  of  his  Divine  Master,  than 
he  ever  made  while  here  on  earth. 

Children,  sons  and  daughters  of  our  departed  friend,  think 
of  him  in  the  happy  world,  meeting  the  beloved  partner  of 
his  life.  Does  he  not  bid  you  come  to  the  brighter  world  ? 
Does  he  not  say,  "  Children,  here — here  is  home,  here  is  home  ?" 
I  think  that  you  must  acknowledge  there  is  a  new  tie  created 
and  a  new  call  to  you  from  that  upper  world. 

Dear  friends  in  the  ministry,  and  especially  you  who  were 
his  colleagues,  is  there  not  in  the  thought  that  your  loved 
brother  has  gone  before  you,  and  that  you  will  soon  follow — 


23 

is  there  not  preachiDg  of  Christ  crucified  in  this,  even  to  your 
own  souls?  And  brethren,  you  who  were  wont  to  gather 
within  these  walls,  and  listen  to  his  words,  how  often  has  he 
stood  where  I  now  stand,  pointing  you  to  that  brighter  and 
better  world,  and  bidding  you  come  to  Jesus  that  you  might 
live.  Oh !  methinks  I  see  him  to-day  pointing — no,  no  longer 
pointing,  for  no  longer  has  he  to  look  up — but  beckoning  to 
you  from  those  purer  worlds,  urging  those  of  you  whom,  when 
here,  he  sought  to  lead  to  the  Saviour,  still  to  come  to  him. 
Therefore  speak  I  of  that  scene.  It  preaches  Christ  crucified, 
whom  our  departed  friend  and  brother  loved.  Oh  !  let  the 
scene  teach  us,  and  let  us  heed  the  lesson. 

The  following  prayer  was  then  offered  by  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Magie,  of  Elizabeth,  K  J. 

PRAYER   BY  THE    REV.    DR.    MAGIE. 

0  God,  our  Heavenly  Father  !  we  thank  thee  that  we  have 
the  opportunity  of  coming  before  thee  once  more,  and  of 
spreading  our  sorrows  before  the  mercy-seat.  We  rejoice  in 
this  privilege  when  trials  overtake  us,  and  dark  dispensations 
of  thy  providence  occur  to  us,  and  beloved  friends  are  torn 
away  from  our  side — that  we  may  come  and  pray  to  thee 
through  Christ.  Thou  Divine  Saviour !  thou  compassionate 
Son  of  God !  do  thou  extend  thine  hand,  and  thine  help  to  us. 
We  commend  this  broken  and  bereaved  family  to  the  care  of 
a  covenant-keeping  God.  May  all  the  prayers  that  our  de- 
parted brother,  and  his  beloved  and  sainted  wife,  long  offered 
for  them,  be  answered  and  fulfilled.  May  the  dear  brethren, 
with  whom  he  labored  so  long  and  so  lovingly,  be  strengthened 
to  walk  in  his  steps — to  follow  him  as  he  followed  Christ. 
And  may  the  people  to  whom  he  broke  the  bread  of  life, 
whose  sick  beds  he  visited,  with  whom  he  mingled  in  their  sor- 
rows and  joys,  now  remember  the  words  that  he  spoke  to  them 
while  he  was  yet  present  with  them.     May  all  the  institutions 


24 

in  which  he  took  so  lively  au  interest  be  benefited,  even  by  his 
death.  O  God!  we  rejoice  that  this  scene  is  not  a  scene  of 
sadness  alone.  There  is  light  shining  in  this  house  of  mourn- 
ing, the  light  that  shines  from  the  Gospel  of  Christ.  And  we 
now,  as  we  close  these  services,  commend  ourselves  to  God, 
and  to  the  Word  of  his  grace,  which  is  able  to  keep  us  from 
falling,  and  to  build  us  up,  and  give  us  an  inheritance  among 
them  that  are  sanctified.  Oh !  may  we  be  so  happy  as  to  meet 
at  last,  washed,  and  sanctified,  and  justified  in  the  name  of  the 
Lord  Jesus,  and  by  the  Spirit  of  our  God!  And  to  the 
Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Holy  Spirit,  be  all  the  praise  for- 
ever. Amen. 
The  T53d  Hymn, 

"  Unveil  thy  bosom,  faithful  tomb, 
Take  this  new  treasure  to  thy  trust," 

was  then  sung,  and  the  vast  audience,  after  taking  a  final  look 
of  the  familiar  features  of  the  venerated  dead,  slowly  separated. 

A  part  of  the  Burial  Service  of  the  Church  w^as  said  at  the 
vault,  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Bethune.  The  Rev.  Dr.  Van  Yranken 
pronounced  the  benediction. 

The  remains  were  then  interred  in  the  family  vault,  adjoin- 
ing the  Church  on  Lafayette  Place,  where  also  lie  the  remains 
of  Mrs.  Knox. 

On  the  cofiin  was  a  plate  bearing  this  inscription  : 

REV.     JOHN     KNOX,     D.D., 

Born  June  17,  1790, 

JDXIBID     J-A.ISrXTA.E,-^    8,    1858- 


PROCEEDINGS 


OP 


CONSISTORY 


ACTS    OF    CONSISTORY. 


At  a  meeting  of  the  minister,  elders,  and  deacons  of  the 
Reformed  Protestant  Dutcli  Church  of  the  City  of  New-York, 
held  January  9,  1858, 

The  President  announced  that  the  meeting  was  called  in  conse- 
quence of  the  decease,  last  evening,  of  our  Senior  Pastor,  Rev. 
John  Knox,  D.D.  ;  that  Consistory  take  such  order  in  reference 
thereto  as  they  may  deem  appropriate. 

Wliereupon  it  loas  ordered^  That  a  Committee  of  Six  be  ap- 
pointed to  make  all  proper  arrangements  for  the  funeral,  and  that 
they  consult  with  the  family  of  the  deceased,  and  fully  carry  out 
their  wishes  as  to  the  order  and  details  of  the  funeral. 

Messrs.  Van  Nest,  Lynes,  Beadle,  Brower,  Schieffelin,  and 
Monroe  were  appointed  such  Committee. 

Resolved^  That  this  Consistory,  the  Ministers,  Elders,  and  Dea- 
cons, attend  the  funeral  as  mourners,  and  wear  the  usual  badge  of 
mourning. 

Besolved^  That  we  meet  at  this  place  on  the  day  of  the  funeral, 
and  proceed  to  the  house  in  a  body,  to  join  in  the  procession. 

Hesolved,  That  a  copy  of  these  Resolutions  be  sent  to  the  family 
of  the  deceased  by  the  Clerk. 

In  Consistory,  January/  14^A,  1858. 

'"'Resolved^  That  the  following  minute,  in  relation  to  the  death 
of  their  beloved  Senior  Pastor,  be  entered  on  the  Minutes  of 
Consistory : 

"While  the  Consistory  desire  to  bow  with  submission  to  the  ever 
wise  providence  of  the  Head  of  the  Church,  in  removing  from 
them  suddenly,  by  death,  their  beloved  and  valuable  pastor,  John 
Knox,  D.D.,  they  feel  this  bereavement  to  be  a  sorely  distressing 
one  to  the  Church  in  which  he  has  so  long  labored  with  diligence, 


28 

fidelity,  and  success,  and  where  his  memory  is  so  deeply  rooted 
and  embalmed  in  the  affections  of  the  people. 

"  Dr.  Knox  was  settled  as  colleague  pastor  of  this  Church  in 
July,  1816,  and  has  remained  in  the  active  discharge  of  the  duties 
of  his  ministry  for  forty-one  years  and  six  months,  when  he  was 
suddenly  called  from  earth  to  heaven  on  the  8th  January  instant. 

"  In  him  there  was  a  beautiful  combination  of  traits  of  character 
which  fitted  him  for  the  great  and  prolonged  usefulness  which  he 
exercised  during  his  life,  and  which  commanded  the  uninterrupted 
respect,  confidence,  and  affection  of  not  only  the  Church,  but  of 
the  community  at  large. 

"  His  piety  was  sincere  and  deep,  and  ever  appeared  to  be  the 
element  in  which  he  moved.  His  judgment  was  sound  and  prac- 
tical, his  spirit  kind  and  tender,  and  his  wisdom  manifest  in  devis- 
ing and  executing  measures  of  usefulness.  His  preaching  was 
uniformly  evangelical,  experimental,  and  instructive.  He  ever 
kept  a  watchful  eye  over  the  wide  extent  of  the  pastoral  charge, 
and  assiduously  performed  the  pastoral  duties  relating  to  it.  His 
intercourse  with  his  people  ever  left  the  most  grateful  impression, 
and  his  visits  in  the  season  of  affliction  and  in  the  chamber  of  sick- 
ness were  most  highly  prized. 

"  Since  1833,  at  the  death  of  Dr.  Kuypers,  he  has  been  the  senior 
colleague.  His  wisdom,  prudence,  and  kindness  have  been  of 
signal  advantage  in  the  Collegiate  charge.  Uninterrupted  har- 
mony has  existed,  and  his  surviving  colleagues  feel  themselves 
specially  bereaved.  He  has  been  placed  in  a  number  of  important 
trusts  by  the  General  Synod  of  our  Church,  in  which,  by  his  effi- 
cient exertions,  he  has  been  instrumental  to  promote  the  interests 
of  the  Reformed  Dutch  Church  at  large.  At  the  same  time  he 
filled  several  important  positions  in  some  of  the  literary  and 
benevolent  institutions  of  this  city,  in  which  his  counsels  and 
labors  were  of  the  greatest  value. 

"A  few  years  past,  his  health  became  more  firm  and  robust  than 
in  some  former  years ;  and  the  prospect  was  bright  for  many  years 
of  continued  active  duty.  Suddenly  he  was  called  away,  in  cir- 
cumstances the  intelligence  of  which  thrilled  the  community. 
But,  though  sudden,  it  '  found  him  with  his  loins  girded,  and  watch- 
ing.' It  was  a  translation  in  a  moment  from  earth  to  heaven  ; 
from  the  scene  of  his  toils  and  his  conflicts  to  that  of  his  rest  and 
victory. 

*'  The  Consistory  deeply  sympathize  with  his  bereaved  family, 
assure  them  of  the  veneration  and  love  with  which  they  will  ever 


29 

cherish  the  memory  of  their  now  glorified  father,  and  pray  that 
the  God  of  their  parents  will  extend  to  their  children  and  their 
children's  children  the  blessings  of  the  covenant,  and  at  last  re- 
imite  them  in  heaven. 

'•'•Jiesolved,  That  it  be  referred  to  our  Senior  Pastor,  the  Rev. 
Dr.  De  Witt,  to  preach  the  funeral  sermon  on  the  occasion  of  the 
death  of  our  late  Pastor,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Knox,  in  each  of  our 
churches." 

In  Consistorj,  February  4,  1858. 

'•'■Eesolved^  That  the  Rev.  Dr.  De  Witt  be  requested  to  furnish, 
for  publication,  his  sermon  commemorative  of  our  deceased  Pastor, 
Rev.  John  Knox,  D.D.,  and  that  the  publication  of  the  sermon, 
with  such  other  matter  as  they  shall  deem  proper,  be  committed 
to  the  committee  who  had  charge  of  the  funeral  ceremonies." 

Extract  from  the  Minutes. 

GEO.  S.  STITT,  Clerk. 


A.     DISCOURSE. 


COMMEMORATIVE   OF  THR 


I{  E  V  .     JOHN     KNOX.     1) .  1) . 


DELIVERED   IS   THB 


MIDDLE    DUTCH    CHURCH,    LAFAYETTE   PLACE, 

On  the  Evening  of  Sabbath,  Jan.  24,  1858, 

BT 

THOMAS     D  E     ^SV  I  T  T  ,     D  .  D  . , 

ONB    OF    THB    1IIXI9TEBS    OF    SAID    CHURCS. 


SERMON. 


Acts  20  :  24 :  "But  none  of  these  things  move  me,  neither  count  I  my 
Ufe  dear  unto  myself,  so  that  I  might  finish  my  course  with  joy,  and  the 
ministry  which  I  have  received  by  the  Lord  Jesus,  to  testify  the  grace  of 
God:" 
connected  with 

2  Timothy  4  :  6,  7,  8 :  "For  I  am  now  ready  to  be  offered  up,  and  the 
time  of  my  departure  is  at  hand.  I  have  fought  a  good  fight,  I  have 
finished  my  course  ;  I  have  kept  the  faith.  Henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for 
me  a  crown  of  righteousness,  which  the  Lord,  the  righteous  Judge,  shall 
give  me  at  that  day,  and  not  unto  me  only,  but  unto  all  them  also  that  love 
his  appearing." 

The  emblems  of  mournino:  surroundinsf  us  are  not  a 
mere  drapery,  as  a  pageant,  attracting  outward  obser- 
vation. They  fitly  correspond  with  the  deep-rooted 
feelings  of  sorrow  for  the  loss  of  their  venerated  and 
beloved  senior  pastor,  which  pervade  this  whole  church 
and  congregation.  They  correspond  also  with  the 
widely  spread  general  sentiment  of  the  community  at 
large,  which,  although  it  may  be  less  deep  and  strong, 
is  equally  true,  sincere,  and  cordial.  This  was  strik- 
ingly testified,  on  the  occasion  of  the  recent  funeral 
solemnities,  by  the  crowds  of  our  citizens  gathered  to- 
gether, and  the  common  feeling  which  seemed  to  influ- 
ence them.  Surely  we  are  allowed,  and  called  to 
mourn.  God  declares  it  to  have  been  the  sin  of  Israel 
3 


34 

of  old,  that  they  were  not  grieved  under  the  afflictions 
dispensed  by  his  hand ;  "  /  have  stricken  them^  hut  they 
were  not  grievedP  If  "  no  chastening  is,  for  the  pre- 
sent, not  joyous,  but  grievous,"  then  a  chastening  like 
this  must  be  truly  and  greatly  grievous. 

In  the  death  of  God's  servant,  whose  memory  we  now 
cherish.  He  has  smitten  us.     He  has  smitten  the  family 
circle,  largely  branched  out,  where  his  spirit  and  life 
were  habitually  felt,  and  seen  in  all  their  loveliness, 
consistency,  and  value,  where  his  doctrine  distilled  as 
the  dew,  and  his  influence  spread  blesssings  around. 
He  has  smitten  this  church  over  which  he  was  placed, 
where  he  labored  for  so  long  a  period  of  years  with  sig- 
nal diligence  and  acceptance ;  where  his  name  is  as  oint- 
ment poured  forth,  and  where  the  best  monument  to  his 
memory  will  be  reared  in  the  warm  affections  and  en- 
during remembrance  of  the  hearts  of  the  people,  to  be 
handed  down  to  children's  children.     He  has  smitten 
the  community  at  large,  who  not  only  witnessed,  felt, 
and  confessed  his  "  holy,  just,  and  unblamable  conver- 
sation," but  reaped  the  fruits  of  his  varied,  active,  and 
efficient  labors  for  the  public  good.     The  Psalmist  ex- 
claims, (Ps.  12  :  1 :)  "  Help,  Lord,  for  the  godly  man 
ceaseth,  for  the  faithful  fail  from  among  the  children  of 
men."     Isaiah  declares,  (Is.  57  :  1 :)  "  The  righteous  per- 
isheth,  and  no  man  layeth  it  to  heart,  and  merciful  men 
are  taken  away,  none  considering  that  the  righteous  is 
taken  away  from  the  evil  to  come."     How  pleasantly  is 
it  immediately  added :  "  He  shall  enter  into  peace,  they 
shall  rest  in  their  beds,  each  one  walking  in  his  upright- 
ness." 


85 

Mournful  and  bereaving  as  is  the  stroke  of  Provi- 
dence which  has  removed  from  us  our  beloved  and 
valued  pastor  and  friend,  there  arise  nothing  in  this 
scene  but  pleasant  memories  which  crowd  upon  the 
mind  in  the  review  of  his  life  and  ministry,  and  in  his 
death  we  are  warranted  to  contemplate  the  victory  he 
gained  as  now  invested  with  the  "crown  of  righteous- 
ness," and  enjoying  the  "inheritance  incorruptible  and 
undefiled  in  the  heavens."  This  church  has  been  fa- 
vored and  blessed  with  his  prolonged  ministry  of  forty- 
one  years  and  a  half  in  uninterrupted  confidence  and 
affection,  and  with  abiding  usefulness.  It  is  for  us  to 
embalm  his  memory,  and  in  view  of  his  recently  opened 
and  now  closed  grave,  to  take  a  retrospect  of  his  life 
and  ministerial  service,  and  then  meditate  on  his  death 
in  all  its  attending  circumstances,  and  all  the  everlast- 
ing issues  following  it  in  the  glory  revealed. 

The  two  passages  of  Scripture  which  I  have  placed 
in  connection,  are  adapted  to  lead  us  to  a  right  consid- 
eration of  the  Providence  which  has  assembled  us,  and 
are  appropriate  to  the  special  commemorative  exercise, 
in  which  we  are  now  engaged.  The  first  passage  is 
taken  from  the  address  delivered  by  the  Apostle  Paul 
to  the  assembled  elders  of  the  Church  at  Ephesus,  when 
he  was  about  to  leave  them  after  a  ministry  of  more 
than  three  years,  and  when  he  bade  them  an  affection- 
ate and  tender  farewell.  The  address  is  a  most  impress- 
ive, faithful,  and  affectionate  one.  It  is  no  wonder  that 
after  its  close,  and  as  Paul  was  about  to  leave  them, 
those  assembled  "  all  wept,  and  fell  upon  his  neck,  and 
kissed  him,  sorrowing  most  of  all  for  the  words  which 


86 

he  spake  that  they  should  see  his  face  no  more."  The 
-second  passage  is  from  Paul's  second  epistle  to  Timothy, 
written  at  the  time  of  his  second  imprisonment  at 
Kome,  and  just  previous  to  the  martyrdom  which,  we 
learn  from  ecclesiastical  history,  he  suffered  there.  To 
this  he  refers :  "  I  am  now  ready  to  be  offered  up,  the 
time  of  my  departure  is  come."  Timothy  was  Paul's 
son  in  the  faith  and  ministry  of  the  Gospel.  The  imme- 
diate context  charges  him  in  relation  to  the  proj)er  dis- 
charge of  the  duties  of  the  mimistry.  The  words 
quoted,  "  I  have  fought  a  good  fight,"  etc.,  while  they 
have  a  bearing  upon  the  Christian  life  in  general,  refer 
particularly  to  the  service  of  the  ministry,  and  connect 
fidelity  in  that  service  with  the  gracious  and  blessed 
reward  which  follows  it.  These  connected  passages 
place  before  us  the  mimstry  of  Paul  and  the  close  of 

IT  AT  DEATH. 

I.  The  Ministry  of  Paul. — Iq  the  address  to  the 
elders  of  the  Church  at  Ephesus,  he  distinctly  refers  to 
the  appropriate  duties  and  employments  of  the  ministry, 
to  the  principles  which  governed  him,  and  the  spirit 
which  characterized  and  animated  him  in  the  discharge 
of  these  duties,  and  so  also  to  the  means  by  which,  and  the 
manner  in  which  they  were  performed.  In  the  history 
of  Paul's  labors  in  the  ministry  of  the  Gospel,  furnished 
in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostle,  compared  with  his  own  de- 
lineation of  them  in  his  address  to  the  elders  of  Ephesus, 
and  with  his  reference  to  them  in  numerous  passages 
in  his  epistles,  as  well  as  the  instructions  and  motive 
which  he  urges  upon  the  ministry,  we  find  a  model  sub- 


37 

lime,  beautiful,  and  attractive,  which  every  minister 
should,  however  imperfectly  and  feebly,  yet  truly  and 
faithfully,  copy.  Let  the  address  to  the  elders  at  Ephe- 
sus,  with  its  numerous  teachings  and  references  as  to  the 
character,  duties,  difficulties,  encouragements,  and  results 
of  the  ministry,  be  ever  present  to  the  mind  of  every  min- 
ister, and  be  his  vade  mecum  through  his  whole  course. 

We  quote  a  large  part  of  his  address  to  the  Ephesian 
elders,  bearing  upon  the  course  of  his  ministry. 

'*  Ye  know,  from  the  first  day  that  I  came  into  Asia, 
after  what  manner  I  have  been  with  you  at  all  seasons, 
serving  the  Lord  with  all  humility  of  mind,  and  Avith 
many  tears,  and  temptations,  which  befell  me  by  the 
lying  in  wait  of  the  Jews.  And  how  I  kept  nothing 
profitable  unto  you,  but  have  shown  you,  and  taught 
publicly,  and  from  house  to  house,  testifying  both  to  the 
Jews,  and  to  the  Greeks,  repentance  toward  God,  and 
faith  toward  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  And  now  I  go 
bound  in  the  spirit  unto  Jerusalem,  not  knowing  the 
things  that  shall  befall  me  there ;  save  that  the  Holy 
Ghost  witnesseth  in  every  city,  saying  that  bonds  and 
afiliction  abide  me.  But  none  of  these  things  move  me, 
neither  count  I  my  life  dear  unto  me,  so  that  I  might 
finish  my  course  with  joy,  and  the  ministry  which  I 
have  received  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  to  testify  the  gospel 
of  the  grace  of  God.  And  now,  behold,  I  know  that  ye 
all,  among  whom  I  have  gone  preaching  the  kingdom  of 
God,  shall  see  my  face  no  more.  Wherefore  I  take  you 
to  record  this  day,  that  I  am  pure  from  the  blood  of  all 
men  ;  for  I  have  not  shunned  to  declare  the  whole 
counsel  of  God." 


88 

In  this  passage  Paul  adverts  to  the  office  he  sustained; 
the  theme  of  his  ministrations  ;  the  spirit  ivhich  he  cher- 
ished^ and  hy  which  he  was  influenced  in  his  woi'Tc  /  the 
industry  and  fidelity  with  which  he  employed  the  various 
means  for  effecting  the  object  of  the  ministry  ;  the  diffi- 
culties encountered  in  the  prosecution  of  it ;  the  firmness 
of  principle^  and  decision  of  character^  which  carried 
him  steadily  through  his  lohole  course  /  and  the  approv- 
ing testimony  of  an  enlightened  and  sanctified  conscience 
and  heart  as  to  the  discharge  of  his  ministry. 

These  points  well  deserve  an  expanded  discussion, 
and  the  outlines  are  here  given,  which,  if  filled  up, 
would  furnish  a  full  and  satisfactory  exhibition  of  the 
Gospel  ministry.  But  in  this  discourse  devoted  to  the 
consideration  of  the  life  and  death  of  our  departed 
friend  and  pastor,  room  is  not  allowed  for  an  extended 
view,  and  a  very  brief  notice  of  these  points  only  can 
be  taken. 

1.  Paul  speaks  of  the  office  with  which  he  was  in- 
vested, and  which  he  terms,  "  the  ministry  which  he 
had  received  from  the  Lord  Jesus."  God  in  his  infinite 
wisdom  and  love  has  provided  salvation  for  sinful  man 
lost  in  guilt  and  depravity,  through  the  redemption 
which  is  in  Christ  Jesus.  To  efi'ect  this  salvation  he  has 
ordained  a  ministry  of  the  truth  and  grace  he  has  re- 
vealed, and  committed  it  to  mortal  men,  raised  out  of  the 
ruins  of  the  fall,  redeemed  and  sanctified.  "  The  treas- 
ure is  committed  unto  earthen  vessels,  that  the  excel- 
lency of  the  power  may  be  of  God."  This  ministry  is 
connected  with  the  declaration  of  divine  truth,  with  the 
organization  of  Christ's  Church  on  earth,  and  with  the 


39 

employment  of  the  various  means  and  agencies  by  which 
the  truth  is  made  effectual.  It  is  termed  by  the  Apos- 
tle in  the  fifth  chapter  of  the  second  Epistle  to  the  Cor- 
inthians, '^  the  ministry  of  reconciliation."  In  that  min- 
istry we  stand  habitually  between  God  and  man. 
"  We  are  ambassadors  for  Christ,  as  though  God  did 
beseech  you  by  us,  we  pray  you  in  Christ's  stead  be  ye 
reconciled  unto  God."  Everlasting  issues  await  this  min- 
istry. It  must  prove  either  a  "  savor  of  life  unto  life, 
or  of  death  unto  death."  It  is  received  from  Christ, 
who,  ascending  on  high,  and  leading  captivity  captive, 
gave  the  gift  of  this  ministry,  that  God  might  dwell 
with  the  rebellious.  As  he  was  about  to  ascend  on 
high,  he  gave  the  commission  :  "  Go  ye  and  preach  the 
gospel  to  every  creature,"  and  added  the  promise : 
"  Lo  !  I  am  with  you  alway,  even  unto  the  end  of  the 
world." 

2.  The  theme  of  Paul's  ministkatio]^. — To  testify 
the  Gospel  of  the  grace  of  God^  and  to  testify  repentance 
toward  God^  and  faith  toward  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 
The  grace  of  God  in  the  provision  of  redemption,  and 
salvation  throus^h  the  atonement  and  mediation  of  Jesus 
Christ,  as  revealed  in  his  word,  and  applied  by  the  spirit 
to  the  soul,  is  interwoven  with  the  vitality  and  marrow 
of  the  Gospel.  With  propriety,  therefore,  is  it  termed 
the  "  Gospel  of  the  grace  of  God." 

The  cross  of  Christ  is  the  central  point,  whence  radi- 
ate all  those  truths,  which,  while  they  unfold  the  way 
of  salvation,  bear  harmoniously  and  fully  upon  the  in- 
terests, the  hopes,  the  duties,  and  consolations  of  men. 
The  exercises  of  "repentance  toward  God,  and  faith 


40 

toward  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,"  correspond  to  our  lost 
estate  by  nature,  and  our  saved  estate  by  grace,  and 
are  interwoven  witli  the  doctrines,  exhortations,  pre- 
cepts, and  promises  of  the  divine  word.     They  must 
ever  be  the  burden  of  the  message  of  the  ministry  of 
the  Gospel.     Paul  declares  in  his  epistle  to  the  Corin- 
thians: "I  determined  to  know  nothing  among  you, 
save  Jesus  Christ,  and  him  crucified."     "We  preach 
not  ourselves,  but  Christ  Jesus  the  Lord,  and  ourselves 
your  servants  for  his  sake."     Such  must  be  the  deter- 
mination and  spirit  of  every  true  minister  of  the  Gospel. 
3.    The    spieit    which    Paul   cherished,    and   by 
WHICH  he  was   influenced   IN   HIS  WORK. — ^''Serving 
the  Lord  with  all  humility  of  mind^  and  with  many 
tearsP     Humility  is  the  very  element  of  holiness  in  the 
service  of  God  by  his  creatures.     Holy  angels  confirmed 
in  their  first  estate  are  most  humble.     Peculiar  must  be 
the  feelings  of  self-abasement  of  the  penitent  sinner  re- 
turning to  God,  and  hoping  in  the  pardoning  mercy  and 
saving  grace  of  the  Redeemer.     This  temper  of  soul 
is  placed  at  the  very  head  of  the  beatitudes  pronounced 
by  our  Saviour,  and  was  frequently  enforced  and  illus- 
trated in  his  discourses  with  his  disciples.     It  is  to  in- 
vest and  adorn  as  a  garment.     "  Be  ye  clothed  with 
humility."     When  we  read  the  epistles  of  Paul,  we  ob- 
serve, how  deeply  humility  was  rooted  in  his  heart. 
While  we  mark  the  ardor  of  his  spirit,  and  the  vigor  of 
his  efi'orts,  we  find  his  humility  uniform  and  prominent. 
Connected  with  this  humility  of  mind  in  the  ministry  of 
Paul  was  great  tenderness  of  feeling.     '*  With  many 
tearsT     The  noble-minded  and  heroic  Paul,  "  who  count- 


41 

ed  not  his  life  dear  unto  him,"  so  that  he  might  fulfill  his 
ministry,"  and  who  looked  death  and  danger  in  the  face 
with  a  calm  and  unmoved  spirit  in  the  prosecution  of 
his  work,  yet  shed  many  tears.     What  a  combination 
do  we  here  find  of  a  gifted  and  cultivated  mind,  and 
firm  purpose,  and  decision,  with  prevailing  warm  and 
tender  affection.     Humility  and  tenderness  of  heart  are 
important  and  vital  elements  in  the  character  of  true 
heroism.     Blind  obstinacy  is  generated  and  nourished 
by  pride  and  selfishness,  but  true  decision  of  character 
and  moral  heroism  are  ever  connected  with  the  calm  and 
enlightened  mind,  and  the  affectionate  and  loving  heart. 
When  Paul  was  arraigned  before  the  Sanhedrim  at  Je- 
rusalem, and  in  chains  before  the  Roman  Governor,  we 
do  not  read  of  his  weeping,  but  his  soul  towered  over 
his  persecutors,  while  his  countenance  shone  with  a  radi- 
ance like  that  which  possessed  Stephen  in  his  last  hours. 
How  expressive  was  his  response  to  Agrippa.     "  I  would 
to  God  that  not  only  thou,  but  also  all  that  hear  me  this 
day,  were  both  almost  and  altogether  such  as  I  am,  ex- 
cept these  londsT     But  when  we  trace  him  laboring  and 
watching  for  souls,  and  feeding  the  flock  of  Christ,  what 
exquisite  tenderness  does  he  display  !     Speaking  of  the 
enemies  of  the  Gospel,  he  writes :  "  Of  whom  I  have 
often  told  you,  and  tell  you  even  now,  iveeping^  that  they 
are  the  enemies  of  the  cross  of  Christ."  (Phil.  3.)    How 
impressively  does  he  state  his  spirit  and  conversation  ex- 
hibited in  the  midst  of  the  churches,  which  he  was  instru- 
mental in  rearing,  and  in  which  he  labored.    "  We  were 
gentle  among  you,  as  a  nurse  cherisheth  her  children. 
So  being  affectionately  desirous  of  you,  we  were  willing 


42 

to  have  imparted  to  you,  not  the  Gospel  of  God  only, 
but  our  own  souls  also,  because  ye  were  dear  to  us." 
This  spirit  was  assimilated  to  that  of  his  Saviour,  who 
never  wept,  but  was  calm  and  undisturbed  under  his 
own  trials  and  sorrows,  but  wept  at  the  grave  of  La- 
zarus, and  over  guilty  and  doomed  Jerusalem. 

4.  The  industry   at^d  fidelity  which  Paul  e3i- 

PLOYED     in     PURSUINa    THE    OBJECT    OF    HIS    MINISTRY. 

He  "  l^ept  hack  nothing  that  xoas  profitable  from  them^  He 
"  showed  them  publicly,  and  taught  them  from  house  to 
houseT  "  He  shunned  not  to  declare  the  whole  counsel  of 
GodP  What  unremitted  diligence  and  activity  are  here 
exhibited,  what  sedulous  care  to  employ  the  best  means, 
and  wisely  to  apply  them,  what  watchfulness  in  regard- 
ing the  individual  state  of  every  member  of  his  charge, 
and  what  solicitude  to  declare  the  pure  truth  in  its  just 
discrimination !  When  we  read  his  epistles,  we  find  the 
same  spirit  breathed,  and  the  same  unwearied  diligence 
in  the  use  of  all  means  to  fulfill  the  work  of  his  ministry. 
The  directions  he  gives  to  Timothy  were  exemplified  by 
himself.  "  Preach  the  word  ;  be  instant  in  season,  out 
of  season  ;  reprove,  rebuke,  exhort  with  all  long-suffer- 
ing and  doctrine."  "  Watch  thou  in  all  things,  endure 
afilictions  ;  make  full  proof  of  thy  ministry." 

5.  The  difficulties  and  trials  encountered  by 
Paul  in  the  prosecution  of  his  ministry,  and  the 
firmness  of   principle  and   decision  of   character, 

which   carried    him    through  his  whole  course. 

He  speaks  of  "  the  many  temptations  by  the  lying  in 
wait  of  the  Jews,"  and  he  surely  anticipates  that  in 
every  city  bonds  and  imprisonment  awaited  him.     The 


43 

form  and  severity  of  the  teaiptations  and  trials  whicli 
beset  the  ministry  now,  are  different  from  those  whicli 
met  Paul,  but  the  world  is  still  unchanged  in  its  reigning 
spirit,  and  its  friendship  is  still  enmity  against  God.  The 
Gospel  applied  with  power  and  faithfulness  to  the  con- 
sciences and  hearts  of  men,  will  prove,  to  the  unrenewed, 
"  foolishness,"  and  excite  opposition.  The  insidious  wiles 
of  the  world  "  lying  in  ivait^''  are  the  most  to  be  guarded 
against,  and  Satan  has  his  greatest  advantage  when  he 
transforms  himself  into  "  an  angel  of  light}''  A  minister 
needs  a  peculiar  and  strict  discipline  of  his  heart  in 
all  circumstances,  continually  to  make  full  proof  of  his 
ministry.  Then  when  the  severest  trials  and  the  strong- 
est opposition  arise,  he  will  remain  calm,  peaceful,  and 
unmoved.  In  view  of  the  temptations  which  laid  in 
wait,  and  in  distinct  apprehension  of  the  persecutions 
and  afflictions  which  were  before  him,  Paul  humbly  and 
confidently  said,  "  None  of  these  things  move  me,"  etc. 
His  singleness  of  aim,  his  strength  of  faith,  his  loving 
devotedness  to  the  service  in  which  he  was  engaged, 
sustained  him  in  all  his  course,  and  enabled  him  to 
"finish  it  with  joy."  He  writes  to  the  Philippians ; 
"  This  ONE  THING  I  do,  forgetting  the  things  that  are  be- 
hind, and  reaching  forth  to  the  things  that  are  before, 
I  press  toward  the  mark  for  the  prize  of  the  high  calling 
of  God  in  Christ  Jesus." 

6.  Hence  Paul  cherished  the  approving  testimony 

OF   AN     ENLIGHTENED    AND    SANCTIFIED     CONSCIENCE    AND 
HEART    AS     TO     THE     DISCHARGE    OF     HIS    MINISTRY. "  I 

take  you  all  to  witness  this  day,  that  I  am  pure  from 
the  blood  of  all  men.     For  I  have  not  shunned  to  de- 


44 

clare  unto  you  the  whole  counsel  of  God."  Thus  he 
writes  to  the  Coiinthians:  "  Therefore  seeing  we  have  this 
ministry,  as  we  have  received  mercy,  we  faint  not,  but 
have  renounced  the  hidden  things  of  dishonesty,  not 
walking  in  craftiness,  nor  handling  the  word  of  God  de- 
ceitfully, but  by  manifestation  of  the  truth,  commending 
ourselves  to  every  man's  conscience  in  the  sight  of  God." 

The  verses  quoted  from  the  Epistle  to  Timothy  lead 
us  to  contemplate  the  close  of  Paul's  ministry  at  death. 
He  was  then  in  bonds  at  his  second  imprisonment  in 
Rome,  and  in  expectation  of  immediate  martyrdom, 
which  we  learn  from  ecclesiastical  history  there  took  place. 
After  directing  his  son  Timothy  in  reference  to  the  dis- 
charge of  the  duties  of  the  ministry,  he  takes  an  approv- 
ing review  of  his  ministerial  course,  connected  with  a 
rejoicing  prospect  of  its  gracious  reward  with  the  crown 
of  righteousness  in  heaven.  In  the  review  he  says  :  "  I 
have  fought  a  good  fight,  I  have  finished  my  course,  I 
have  kept  the  faith."  How  beautifully  and  aptly  do 
these  several  expressions  correspond  to  Paul's  delinea- 
tion of  the  ministerial  course,  which  he  pursued,  in  his 
address  to  the  elders  of  the  Church  at  Ephesus !  "  I 
HAVE  FOUGHT  A  GOOD  FIGHT."  In  his  addrcss  he  speaks 
of  the  temptations  lying  in  wait,  and  the  persecutions 
and  afflictions  which  attended  and  awaited  him.  "I 
HAVE  FINISHED  MY  COURSE."  This  is  cxactly  correspond- 
ing to  the  phrase  in  his  address,  that  "  I  might  finish  my 
course  with  joy."  To  the  elders  of  Ephesus  he  declares 
his  humble  and  firm  purpose,  amid  all  circumstances  so 
to  fulfill  the  ministry  which  he  had  received  of  the 
Lord  Jesus,  as  to  "  finish  his  course  with  joy."     Now  in 


45 

immediate  view  of  death,  and  in  a  distinct  and  enlight- 
ened review  he  exclaims :  "  It  is  finished  with  joy."  ''  I 
HAVE  KEPT  THE  FAITH."  This  alludes  not  merely  OT  di- 
rectly to  his  personal  adherence  to  the  faitli  he  had  re- 
ceived, but  particularly  to  his  ministry  of  the  truth.  This 
corresponds  to  the  portion  of  his  address  as  to  the  tes- 
timony he  bore  of  his  declaration  of  the  whole  counsel 
of  God,  so  as  to  be  pure  from  the  blood  of  all  men. 
With  such  a  review  he  connects  the  exulting  prospect 
of  the  reward  of  grace,  with  the  plaudit :  "  Well  done, 
good  and  faithful  servant,  enter  thou  into  the  joy  of  thy 
Lord."  There  is  a  force  in  the  expressions  as  w^e  sepa- 
rately trace  them.  ^'  Henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for  me 
a  crown  of  righteousness,  which  the  Lord,  the  righteous 
Judge,  shall  give  me  at  that  day ;  and  not  to  me  only,  but 
unto  all  them  that  love  his  appearing."  The  dissection 
of  this  sentence  into  the  terms  which  compose  it,  as  se- 
parately contemplated,  and  then  brought  into  their  con- 
nection, will  unfold  a  beauty  and  force  in  their  meaning, 
not  apprehended  in  the  first  general  view.  On  the  dis- 
tinct points  we  can  not  dwell,  but  merely  direct  atten- 
tion to  one,  ^''  Not  to  me  only ^  hut  unto  all  them  that  love 
Ms  appearing^  Looking  forward  to  his  own  "  crown  of 
righteousness  and  glory,"  his  heart  at  once  embraces  all 
the  redeemed  of  Christ,  here  described  as  "  loving  his 
appearing."  The  communion  of  saints  on  earth  assimi- 
lates to,  and  is  preparatory  to  the  communion  of  saints 
in  heaven.  As  Paul  here  adverts  to  the  course  of  his 
own  ministry  and  its  results,  he  doubtless  has  peculiar 
respect  to  its  fruits  in  sinners  converted,  brought  to 
Christ  and  trained  for  heaven.     This  relation  is  one  of 


46 

inexpressible  tenderness.  The  Apostle  says  :  "  Thougli 
ye  have  ten  thousand  instructors  in  Christ,  yet  have  ye 
not  many  fathers."  ^'  For  what  is  our  hope,  or  joy,  or 
crown  of  rejoicing  ?  Are  not  even  ye  in  the  presence 
of  our  Lord  Jesus  at  his  coming  ?  Ye  are  our  glory  and 
joy."  Great  will  be  the  bliss  and  joy  in  having  the 
crown  of  righteousness  and  glory  studded  with  jewels  of 
sinners  saved. 

"  Then,  holy,  happy  Shepherd  !  thou  shalt  stand 
Among  thy  ransomed  sheep  at  Christ's  right  hand  ; 
Keceive  thy  blest  reward,  in  glory  rise, 
And  like  a  star  illume  the  upper  skies." 

"  They  that  be  wise  shall  shine  as  the  brightness  of 
the  firmament,  and  they  that  turn  many  to  righteous- 
ness as  the  stars  forever." 

The  lineaments  of  a  faithful  evangelical  ministry,  as 
drawn  by  Paul,  and  the  joyful  close  and  issue  of  it,  are 
not  inappropriate  to  a  view  and  contemplation  of  the 
life  and  death  of  our  late  senior  pastor. 

We  proceed  to  give  a  brief  sketch  of  the  early  life 
and  training  of  our  departed  friend  and  pastor,  until  he 
entered  the  ministry  and  became  the  pastor  of  this 
church.  Then  after  considering  some  of  the  traits  of 
his  character  harmoniously  adjusted,  and  consistently 
exemplified,  we  shall  trace  his  onward  course  of 
faithful  and  useful  labor  in  the  offices  he  sustained,  and 
the  trusts  committed  to  him. 

Dr.  Knox  was  born  June  17,  1790.  It  was  his  pri- 
vilege and  happiness  to  be  descended  from  a  chain  of 
pious  ancestry.      His  grandfather,  Samuel  Knox,  of  a 


47 

Scotcli  Presbyterian  family,  emigrated  from  the  north 
of  Ireland  about  a  century  since,  and  settled  in  Adams 
county,  Pennsylvania,  near  Gettysburgh,  on  a  property 
still  possessed  by  his  descendants.  He  died  in  1808  at 
the  age  of  eighty-two.  Dr.  Knox  spoke  with  deep  emo- 
tion of  the  excellent  traits  which  adorned  his  character. 
He  was  eminently  pious,  well  instructed,  and  intelligent 
in  evangelical  truth.  Thus  his  grandson  received  from 
him  many  of  his  first  lessons  in  the  truths  of  the  Gospel. 
Often  did  they  kneel  together  in  the  closet,  when  the 
aged  Christian  would  pour  out  his  heart  in  behalf  of  his 
grandson.  Dr.  Knox,  in  the  intimacy  of  his  family- 
circle,  has  been  known  in  recurring  to  his  grandfather 
to  shed  tears  and  exclaim,  Oil  I  lioiv  I  loved  Mm  !  ^'  It 
is  believed  that  the  care  and  the  efforts  of  this  man  of 
God  exerted  a  great  influence  in  early  childhood  and 
youth  in  forming  his  character,  which  through  life  was 
so  beautifully  and  consistently  unfolded.  The  pious 
wife  of  this  venerable  man  died  in  1818  at  the  age  of 
eighty-four.  Her  Bible  with  Canne's  notes,  passed  into 
the  hands  of  our  deceased  friend,  and  was  his  devotional 
companion  to  the  last  of  his  life. 

His  father  was  Dr.  Samuel  Knox,  who  died  on  the 
homestead,  in  Adams  county,  in  1821,  at  the  age  of  sixty. 
He  was  a  physician  in  high  reputation,  and  with  large 
practice.  He  was  known  as  a  pious  man,  and  held  in 
high  reputation  in  the  church  and  the  community,  and 
his  house  was  the  resort  of  pious  ministers.  His  mother 
was  a  worthy  helpmate  of  her  husband.  She  survived 
him  a  number  of  years,  and  died  in  1843.     Many  in  our 

*  See  Appendix,  Note  A. 


48 

church  will  remember  this  mother  in  Israel  by  the 
visits  she  was  accustomed  to  pay  to  her  son.  Under 
such  happy  and  continued  influences  his  spirit  and  cha- 
racter were  formed  from  early  childhood  and  youth ; 
and  as  w^as  the  child,  so  afterwards  became  the  man. 
From  childhood  he  evinced  great  conscientiousness,  ten- 
derness, and  affection,  and  a  strict  regard  to  every  duty 
assigned  to  him.  He  received  his  instruction  in  pre- 
paration for  college  from  his  father,  and  from  the  min- 
ister of  the  church  to  which  the  family  were  attached, 
and  of  which  he  early  became  a  member.  He  entered 
the  junior  class  in  Dickinson  College,  at  Carlisle,  in 
1809,  and  graduated  in  1811.  la  his  college  life,  pro- 
fessors and  students  alike  regarded  him  with  respect  and 
affection,  and  in  no  case  have  the  associations  then 
formed  been  terminated  but  by  death.  The  few  of  his 
early  companions  will  cherish  his  memory  as  that  of 
one  who  in  mature  and  older  years  developed  into  ripe- 
ness the  strong,  lovely,  and  pure  traits  of  character 
which  in  youth  attracted  their  hearty  esteem. 

Leaving  college,  he  at  once  resolved  upon  fulfilling 
the  purpose,  which  he  had  long  entertained,  of  a  course 
of  preparation  for  the  ministry,  and  entered  into  the 
Theological  Seminary  of  the  Associate  Reformed  Church 
in  this  city,  under  the  superiatendence  of  Rev.  Dr.  John 
M.  Mason.  While  there,  the  impression  he  made  with- 
in the  Seminary  was  strong,  and  excited  the  ho]3e  of  his 
future  usefulness.  Amons:  his  fellow-students  there 
arose  an  attachment  to  him  which  bound  them  as  with 
clasps  of  steel,  and  which,  instead  of  weakening,  became 
stronger  by  years.     At  that  time,  an  acute  observer  of 


49 

character  remarked :  "  He  is  one  of  nature's  noblemen.'' 
It  miglit  liave  been  added,  "  made  so  by  divine  grace.'' 

An  incident  occurred  in  tbe  course  of  these  his  stu- 
dies, which  has  recently  been  related  to  me,  and  which 
I  venture  to  insert  here.  In  the  year  1812,  he  was 
travelling  in  the  mountainous  parts  of  western  Pennsyl- 
vania, when  he  alighted  upon  a  poor  cottage.  On  en- 
tering it,  he  found,  amid  the  signs  of  poverty  around, 
two  aged  persons,  with  their  two  daughters,  with  the 
air  of  respectability  in  their  great  destitution.  On  con- 
versing with  them,  he  found  they  were  Gen.  Arthur  St. 
Clair,  a  soldier  in  the  French  war,  Maj.  General  in  the 
Revolutionary  Army,  and  afterwards  Governor  of  the 
]S"orth- Western  Territory,  with  his  family.  Much  af- 
fected with  the  incident,  he  made  a  statement  appealing 
to  American  patriotism  and  Christian  benevolence. 
Some  benevolent  ladies  moved  thereby,  it  is  said,  col- 
lected in  this  city  eleven  hundred  dollars. 

He  received  his  licensure  to  preach  the  Gospel  in  1815. 
It  was  a  rule  in  the  Associate  Reformed  Church,  that 
after  licensure,  a  year  should  be  spent  in  visiting 
the  vacancies  within  the  bounds  of  the  Church,  as  ar- 
ranged by  the  Synod.  After  fulfilling  his  appoint- 
ments, he  received  calls  for  settlement  from  three  of  the 
leading  vacancies.'"  At  this  time,  ministerial  aid  was 
needed  in  this  our  Colleo^iate  Church.  Havinsr  become 
favorably  known  during  his  residence  as  a  theological  stu- 
dent in  the  city,  and  having  preached  to  the  acceptance 
of  the  congregation,  he  was  unanimously  called  as  one  of 
the  colleague  pastors,  and  was  installed  July  IG,  1816. 
His  classmate  and  friend,  Paschal  N.  Strong,  was  called 

4  *  See  Appendix,  Note  B. 


50 

and  settled  at  tlie  same  time.  Drs.  Milledoler  and  Kuy- 
pers  were  at  this  time  tlie  officiating  ministers.  Dr.  Mille- 
doler left  in  1825,  being  called  to  the  Professorship  of  The- 
ology in  our  Theological  Seminary  at  New-Brunswick. 
Dr.  Kuypers  died  in  1833,  since  which  Dr.  Knox  has  been 
the  senior  minister  for  the  period  of  nearly  twenty-five 
years.  Through  his  whole  ministerial  course  he  has 
been  in  the  most  affectionate  and  confidential  inter- 
course with  all  his  colleagues,  and  his  sound  judgment, 
affectionate  kindness,  and  practical  wisdom  have  been 
eminently  serviceable  in  that  relation. 

In  1818,  Dr.  Knox  entered  into  the  marriage  relation 
with  the  eldest  daughter  of  his  theological  instructor, 
the  Kev.  Dr.  Mason,  in  whom  he  received  a  rich  bless- 
ing and  found  a  true  heljDmate.  I  may  be  here  allowed 
to  pay  a  passing  tribute  to  her  memory.  She  was  gifted 
with  a  strong  mind,  which  was  well  cultivated.  She 
was  unpretending  and  simple  in  her  manners.  Her 
spirit  was  social,  kind,  and  buoyant.  In  the  numerous 
family  of  children  given  to  them,  she  exerted  the  hap- 
piest influence,  and  was  a  light  in  her  household ;  and 
her  influence  in  the  whole  circle  in  which  she  moved 
was  pleasant  and  salutary.  Her  memory  is  endeared 
to  the  congregation  of  her  husband's  charge.  She  died 
July  6, 1855,  rejoicing  in  the  hope  of  the  Gospel.*  After 
a  separation  of  two  years  and  a  half,  their  bodies  now 
lie  side  by  side  in  the  tomb,  and  their  spirits  are  re- 
united in  the  presence  of  Christ,  where  there  is  fullness 
of  joy.f 

*  See  Appendix,  Note  C. 

t  In  the  life  of  Dr.  Mason,  we  find  in  a  letter  from  him  to  his  uncle,  Ebenezer 
Mason,  of  Edinburgh,  the  following  reference  to  the  approaching  marriage 


51 

We  now  proceed  to  advert  to  some  of  the  traits  of 
character  in  our  deceased  friend  and  pastor,  and  after- 
wards take  a  view  of  their  developmeut  in  the  different 
fields  he  occupied  and  in  the  offices  he  sustained. 

In  recalling  to  my  mind  my  endeared  friend,  and 
following  the  current  of  his  life  during  the  thirty  years 
in  which  I  have  been  intimately  associated  with  him, 
and  in  a'ttempting  to  delineate  his  character,  I  feel  a 
difficulty  arising  from  the  beautiful  harmony  of  these 
traits,  the  symmetry  of  his  whole  character,  and  the 
even  and  steadfast  course  which  he  pursued  through 
life.  There  was  no  peculiar  prominence  in  any  one 
trait  so  as  to  obscure  and  depress  others  ;  nor  was  his 
life  filled  with  peculiar  or  extraordinary  incidents.  His 
path  from  the  morning  of  life  was  that  of  the  just,  shin- 
ing more  and  more  steadily  and  onward  to  the  perfect 
day. 

Where  there  is  a  river  arising  from  and  nourished  by 
springs  beneath,  copiously  supplying  it,  and  which 
passes  through  a  level  country  in  a  straight  direction, 
enlarging  and  deepening  its  channel,  and  quietly  spread- 
ing fertility  on  all  sides,  there  is  very  little  to  supply 
the  pencil  of  the  painter  to  furnish  a  prominent  picture. 

of  his  daughter,  which  took  place  May  11,  1818.  The  brief  allusion  to  Dr. 
K.'s  traits  of  character  exhibits  him  as  he  appeared  through  life  :  "Euphc- 
mia,  who  loses  none  of  her  superiority  and  interest,  is  shortly  to  be  married 
to  one  of  my  pupils,  a  minister  of  the  Dutch  Church  in  this  city.  He  has 
the  name  of  a  famous  reformer — John  Knox,  and  was  he  a  lineal  descend- 
ant of  that  great  man,  would  not  shame  his  blood.  The  fire  of  the  Scottish 
Elijah  he  has  not,  for  he  has  not  so  many  bad  materials  to  burn  up  ;  but  he 
is  much  respected  for  his  piety,  good  sense,  sound  doctrine,  and  calm  in- 
trepidity in  the  work  of  the  Lord." 


52 

But  where  there  are  mountains,  and  cascades,  and 
curves,  and  corners,  the  picture  is  readily  filled  up. 

In  presenting  a  short  outline  of  the  traits  of  his  cha- 
racter, it  is  difficult  to  avoid  the  aspect  of  indulging  in 
the  vein  of  eulogy.  But  I  am  conscious  that  it  is  not 
merely  affectionate  attachment  to  his  memory,  but  a 
knowledge  carefully  formed  with  the  best  opportunities 
in  the  intimacies  of  intercourse  of  observing  him  in  the 
different  circumstances  of  life,  that  guides  me  in  the  es- 
timate. And  I  well  know  that  the  whole  circle  of  his 
acquaintances  and  friends,  especially  those  who  have 
been  for  the  longest  period  acquainted  with  him,  will 
testify  that  I  use  in  relation  to  him  the  language  of 
truth  and  soberness. 

1.  Dr.  Knox  was  a  man  of  discipliis^ed,  earnest,  and 
UNIFORM  PIETY.  The  proccss  by  which  he  was  very 
early  trained  in  the  fear  of  God  and  the  love  of  Christ, 
has  been  adverted  to.  Hence  it  was  not  of  a  fitful  na- 
ture, swayed  by  impulses,  and  fluctuating  in  its  nature, 
but  it  became  incorporated  with  his  nature,  and  was  the 
vital  element  in  which  he  lived  and  moved.  It  breathed 
in  his  spirit,  it  spake  in  his  words,  and  acted  in  his  life. 
He  was  a  man  of  prayer,  acknowledging  the  Lord  in  all 
his  ways.  Humble  in  his  spirit,  and  never  obtruding  any 
thing  in  relation  to  his  personal  religious  character  and 
exercise,  yet  no  one  could  stay  by  his  side  without  real- 
izing that  he  was  a  devout  man,  living  and  walking  in 
a  heavenly  atmosphere.  It  was  this  strength  and  cul- 
ture of  early  piety  which,  grafted  upon  a  pleasant 
natural  temperament,  moulded  his  character  in  the 
form  it  displayed  through  life,  and  gave  to  him  that 


53 

love  and  respect  wliicli  clustered  around  him,  and  fur- 
nished him  with  that  silently  growing  and  expanding 
usefulness  he  exerted. 

2.  He  was  a  man  of  great  co^^scientiousness,  sim- 
plicity, a:nt>  integrity  of  character.  He  had  the 
wisdom  to  mark  times  and  circumstances,  in  order  to 
regulate  his  judgment  and  course  of  conduct,  but  guile 
was  never  found  in  his  heart  or  on  his  lips.  What  he 
thought  and  felt  he  spoke.  The  "  hidden  things  of  dis- 
honesty" never  came  near  him,  or  were  his  abhorrence. 
This  trait  in  his  character  impressed  me  on  my  first  ac- 
quaintance, and  as  the  opening  years  of  his  life  were 
displayed  before  me  during  the  many  years  in  which 
we  were  associated,  the  conviction  became  continually 
strengthened  that  he  was  "  an  Israelite  indeed,  in  whom 
there  was  no  guile,"  and  that  he  was  privileged  to  cher- 
ish the  testimony  of  an  approving  conscience  that  "  in 
godly  sincerity  and  simplicity,  not  by  fleshly  wisdom, 
but  by  the  grace  of  God  he  had  his  conversation  in  the 
world." 

3.  He  was  a  man  of  sound  judgment,  carefully 
TRAINED,  AND  OF  A  PRACTICAL  wiSDo:\r,  which  was  rarely 
mistaken,  in  the  counsels  and  measures  adopted  and 
pursued.  It  was  not  indeed  that  acuteness  of  intellect 
which  theorizes  as  to  the  unknown  and  invisible  in  its 
transcendental  investigations.  But  his  was  the  solid 
sense,  the  clear  judgment,  and  the  practical  wisdom, 
which  mark  human  life  as  it  is,  and  events  as  they  arise 
in  Providence,  which  will  preserve  their  possessor  in 
purity  and  peace,  and  make  the  i)ath  of  duty  and  well- 
doing plain  before  him.     This  was  remarked  concern- 


54 

ing  him,  as  he  gained  acquaintance  with  his  brethren  in 
the  ministry,  and  as  he  made  his  appearance  in  the 
ecclesiastical  bodies.  Hence  he  was  much  resorted  to 
as  a  wise  counsellor  to  be  safely  trusted  in  matters  of 
difficulty,  and  for  the  solution  of  cases  of  conscience. 
In  the  various  trusts  committed  to  him,  he  evinced 
prominently  in  the  execution  of  them,  this  sound  judg- 
ment and  practical  wisdom.  And  while  he  was  a  wise 
counsellor,  he  was  truly  a  peace-maker. 

4.  He  was  a  man  fixed  and  un wavering  in  his  prin- 
ciples of  faith,  and  of  duty.  He  could  say :  "  I  believe, 
therefore  have  I  spoken."  He  had  early  received  the 
teachings  of  divine  truth  in  a  prayerful  spirit,  and  its 
instructions  were  from  childhood  imbedded  in  his  heart, 
and  interwoven  with  his  intellectual  and  spiritual  cul- 
ture. No  temptation,  however  subtle  or  surprising,  could 
swerve  him  from  his  enlightened  and  pure  faith,  or  se- 
duce him  from  the  path  of  uprightness.  No  varying 
wind  of  doctrine  turned  him  aside.  Humble  and  self- 
distrustful,  he  lay  low  at  the  throne,  and  thence  he  de- 
rived that  clearness  of  vision,  and  that  strength  of  holy 
resolution  which  kept  him,  and  led  him  onward  in  the 
"  even  path  of  uprightness." 

5.  He  was  a  man  of  gee  at  courtesy,  kindness,  and 
URBANITY.  He  w^as  dignified  in  his  appearance  and  in 
all  his  intercourse,  but  never  distant  or  supercilious. 
He  was  social  in  his  spirit,  and  in  his  habits.  He  could 
mix  in  the  highest  ranks  of  society  without  embarrass- 
ment, eliciting  respect  from  all,  while  no  one  knew  bet- 
ter how  to  "  condescend  to  men  of  low  estate,"  and  to  visit 
the  cottages  of  the  poor,  and  identify  himself  with  them. 


55 

He  consulted  all  the  minor  proprieties  of  life  every 
where,  and  on  all  occasions.  In  this  there  was  no  thin  2: 
studied.  It  seemed  to  flow  from  his  very  nature,  as  if 
he  could  not  do  otherwise. 

6.  He  was  a  man  of  tendeeness  of  feelikg.  With 
him,  as  we  have  before  remarked  in  the  case  of  Paul, 
humility  and  tenderness  of  heart  were  necessary  and 
important  elements  in  forming  that  decision  of  charac- 
ter, which  is  enlightened,  pure,  and  beneficent.  This 
tenderness  of  feeling  appeared  to  those  who  became  in- 
timate with  him,  a  striking  feature  in  him.  It  was 
strongly  felt  in  his  domestic  circle ;  it  was  felt  around 
him,  wherever  he  moved,  and  was  best  appreciated 
by  those  who  enjoyed  the  most  of  his  confidence  and 
friendship.  Thus  readily  his  sympathies  were  called  in 
exercise  ''  to  rejoice  with  them  that  rejoice,  and  weep 
with  them  that  weep."  Thus  Avas  he  qualified  to  be  a 
son  of  consolation. 

7.  He  was  a  mai^  of  esdustey,  ais^d  he  systematized 
the  course  of  duties  devolving  upon  him  for  the  faithful 
discharge  of  them.  Very  few  understand  and  realize  the 
amount  of  duties  in  different  spheres  which  rested  upon 
him,  and  the  exactness  of  the  attention  which  he  paid 
to  all.  He  observed  punctuality  in  his  engagements 
with  great  precision.  Whatever  business  might  accu- 
mulate, he  never  allowed  any  ofiice  or  duty  he  assumed 
to  prove  a  sinecure.  Quietly  he  accomplished  much  by 
''  doing  one  thing  at  a  time,"  and  arranging  it  in  its  pro- 
per place  and  order. 

8.  In  him  evangelical  faith  and  a  catholic  spirit 
were  happily  united.     His  heart  breathed   the  Ian- 


56 

guage :  "  Grace,  mercy  and  peace  be  upon  all  them  who 
love  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  in  sincerity  and  truth."  No 
one  could  be  more  firmly  attached  to  the  system  of 
doctrines  he  embraced,  and  more  devoted  to  the  inter- 
ests of  the  Church  wherein  he  labored.  But  his  large 
heart  embraced  all  in  the  common  faith  and  love  of 
Christ,  by  whatever  name  called.  For  a  period  of  min- 
isterial service  approaching  forty-two  years,  he  dwelt 
by  the  side  of  his  ministerial  brethren  and  Christians 
of  other  evangelical  denominations  in  uninterrupted 
mutual  respect  and  friendship. 

These  traits  of  character  were  consistently  and  hap- 
pily developed  in  the  various  relations,  trusts  and  offices 
with  which  he  was  invested. 

They  were  displayed  in  his  home  and  domestic  circle. 
Character  has  there  its  best  illustration,  as  it  is  there 
constantly  witnessed,  and  there  its  influence  is  constantly 
exerted.  There  are  the  ties  which  are  the  closest  and 
most  tender ;  and  thence  spread  influences  which  bear 
upon  society  and  the  Church.  But  the  family  home  is  a 
sacred  scene,  with  whose  interests,  joys,  and  trials  a 
stranger  must  not  intermeddle.  But  the  character  we 
have  depicted  must  have  had  a  peculiar  lustre,  and  ex- 
erted a  blessed  influence  there.  A  large  family  of  child- 
ren was  given  to  him,  nine  of  whom  survive,  all  having 
reached  maturity,  and  four  having  died  in  infancy. 
The  memory  of  father  and  mother  is  deeply  rooted  in 
the  hearts  of  the  children,  and  they  will  esteem  the 
heritao:e  connected  with  the  remembrance  of  their  faith 
and  piety,  their  instructions,  prayers,  and  holy  example, 
as  above  all  price.     His  house  was  often  the  home  of  or- 


plians,  nieces  and  nepliews,  and  over  wliom  lie  exercised 
all  of  a  father's  care  and  kindness.  Very  many  recall 
his  cordial  and  generous  hospitality.  Letters  from  some 
at  a  distance,  from  those  who  frequently  enjoyed  it 
while  in  this  city,  have  been  received,  dwelling  upon 
the  worth  of  Dr.  Knox's  character,  especially  as  mani- 
fested at  home."^'* 

View  him  in  iiis  ministerial  office,  preaching  the 
gospel  of  Christ.  In  the  declaration  of  divine  truth 
he  was  always  sound  in  sentiment,  lucid  in  discussion, 
and  he  bore  it  practically  home  to  the  consciences  and 
hearts  of  his  hearers.  His  preparation  for  the  pulj^it 
was  careful.  His  discourses  were  uniformly  imbued 
with  evangelical  truth,  and  replete  with  Scripture  inter- 
woven. His  manner  was  with  deep  seriousness,  and 
bore  the  conviction  of  his  cordial  sincerity.  Although 
he  may  have  been  destitute  of  that  glare  and  glitter 
which  attract  the  masses,  and  produce  a  sudden  and 
meteor-like  popularity,  still  every  reflecting  mind,  and 
upright  heart,  seeking  to  be  profited,  would  never  fail 
to  be  edified  by  his  ministrations.f  He  never  kept  out 
of  view  the  cross,  while  declaring  the  whole  counsel  of 
God.  He  could  say,  in  relation  to  the  many  topics  which 
we  see  often  announced,  and  which  lose  sight  of  the  cross, 
and  tend  only  to  passing  excitement  and  amusement,  as 
Archbishop  Leighton  replied  to  one  who  asked  him  why 
he  did  not  preach  as  others  on  the  agitating  topics  of  the 
times:  "  Oh  !"  said  he,  "there  are  enough  to  preach  on 
the  times;  will  you  not  allow  me,  a  poor  servant  of 
Christ,  to  preach  for  your  souls,  and  on  eternity  ?''     In 

*  See  Appendix,  Note  D.  t  See  Appendix,  Note  E. 


58 

the  preacliing  of  Dr.  Knox  the  state  of  his  people  was 
always  brought  in  view  with  happy  adaptation.  He 
always  marked  what  respected  and  affected  the  state 
and  interests  of  his  flock,  and  then  rightly  divided  the 
word  of  truth.  Recalling  the  valuable  pulpit  ministra- 
tions of  Dr.  Knox  in  their  matter  and  manner,  I  have 
been  disposed  to  view  them  as  the  ideal  of  the  oft- 
quoted  words  of  Cowper: 

'*  I  would  express  him  simple,  grave,  sincere  ; 
In  doctrine  uncorrupt ;  in  language  plain, 
And  plain  in  manner ;  decent,  solemn,  chaste, 
And  natural  in  gesture  ;  much  impressed 
Himself  as  conscious  of  his  awful  charge. 
And  anxious,  mainly,  that  the  flock  he  feeds 
May  feel  it  too  ;  affectionate  in  look 
And  tender  in  address,  as  well  became 
A  messenger  of  grace  to  guilty  men." 

View  him  in  the  discharge  of  his  pastoral  duties. 
Here  he  was  eminently  attentive  and  useful,  and  few 
have  surpassed  him  in  this  respect.  There  were  graven 
on  the  breast-plate  of  the  High  Priest  the  names  of  the 
twelve  tribes  of  Israel  in  his  approach  to  the  mercy-seat. 
So  with  Dr.  K.,  the  names  of  the  people  of  his  charge 
were  on  his  heart,  and  his  eye  was  fastened  upon  their 
interests.  This  collegiate  congregation  ^extends  over  a 
large  part  of  the  city,  in  some  places  sparsely,  in  others 
more  densely.  The  care  of  the  pastors  is  not  divided 
into  sections  allotted  to  one  separately,  but  the  charge 
of  each  one  covers  the  whole  extent.  He  was  minutely 
observant  of  the  state  of  the  congregation.  He  would 
on  Sabbath  from  the  pulpit  look  over  the  face  of  the 
congregation,  and  during  the  week  I  have  heard  him 
say :  "  Such  a  family  or  person  was  not  in  his  pew. 


59 

Probably  some  one  is  sick."  In  consequence  lie  would 
make  his  call  to  ascertain.  His  visits  to  the  chamber 
of  sickness,  and  in  seasons  of  affliction,  were  ever  most 
grateful  and  highly  prized,  and  there  are  many  hearts 
among  us  which  will  ever  cherish  the  memory  of  them. 

In  the  position  which  he  occupied  as  senior  colleague, 
his  influence  was  most  salutary  and  pleasant.  Some 
have  supposed  that  a  collegiate  ministerial  and  pastoral 
relation  is  in  its  nature  and  operation  a  delicate  one. 
It  may  be  so,  where  minds  and  hearts  are  not  in  unison  ; 
but  when  they  are,  it  may  be  productive  of  much  com- 
fort, and  promote  usefulness.  His  admirable  judgment, 
and  kind  spirit,  during  his  whole  ministry,  commended 
him  to  his  colleagues,  and  since  his  accession  as  senior 
colleague,  we  his  surviving  colleagues  are  witnesses  of 
his  great  usefulness  in  that  position,  and  his  memory  is 
greatly  endeared  to  us. 

He  has  rendered  important  services  to  the  Reformed 
Dutch  Church  at  large.  Early  after  his  settlement  in 
the  ministry  here,  he  was  remarked  by  the  ministers 
and  friends  of  the  Church  who  gained  his  acquaintance 
as  possessing  valuable  traits  of  character,  inspiring  con- 
fidence and  hope  of  future  usefulness.  His  first  appear- 
ance in  our  ecclesiastical  bodies  made  a  most  favorable 
impression.  He  was  chosen  Stated  Clerk  of  the  Gen- 
eral Synod  in  1818,  and  continued  such  about  eight  or 
nine  years.  He  took  a  very  active  part  in  raising  funds 
for  the  endowment  of  professorships  in  the  Theological 
Seminary  at  New-Brunswick,  and  also  funds  for  Rut- 
gers College.  Of  the  ministers  laboring  actively  for 
these  objects,  Drs.  Ludlow  and  Schoonmaker,  both  now 


60 

removed  to  their  rest,  were  very  efficient ;  but  it  is  be- 
lieved that  Dr.  Knox  bestowed  more  time  and  effort 
than  any  other  in  the  ministry.  A  venerable  elder  of 
our  Church  (Mr.  Abraham  Van  JVest)  still  survives,  to 
whose  liberality  and  efforts  our  institutions  are  more 
indebted  than  to  those  of  any  other,  and  by  whose  side 
Dr.  Knox  worked.  On  the  various  boards  which  have 
been  organized  by  our  General  Synod,  he  generally  had 
a  place,  and  the  duties  belonging  to  such  places,  like  all 
he  ever  undertook,  he  always  carefully  and  punctually 
discharged.  From  the  moment  he  entered  in  the  Re- 
formed Dutch  Church,  he  identified  himself  with  its  in- 
terests, loved  her  cordially  for  her  genius  and  character, 
and  acted  continually  a  prominent  and  most  useful  part 
in  promoting  her  welfare  and  prosperity. 

Early  after  the  Board  of  Corporation  of  the  General 
Synod  was  organized,  he  was  chosen  a  Director.  To 
this  Board  is  intrusted  the  suiDcrintendence  of  the 
finances  of  the  Church  at  large,  relating  to  the  endow- 
ments of  the  literary  and  theological  institutions  ;  the 
scholarship  for  beneficiaries ;  the  Widows'  Fund,  etc. 
The  number  of  directors  is  ^ve,  of  which  he  was  the 
only  clerical  member.  His  services  here  were  very 
valuable,  and  he  exhibited  that  business  talent  wbich 
he  carried  into  every  post  he  assumed. 

He  took  a  part  in  a  number  of  those  societies  in 
which  the  cooperation  of  Christians  is  found  in  spread- 
ing the  kingdom  of  the  Redeemer  throughout  our  land, 
and  throughout  the  world.  He  was  particularly  identi- 
fied with  the  American  Tract  Society  from  its  form- 
ation until  his  death,  as  a  member  of  the  Publishing 


61 

Committee.  The  amount  of  labor  involved  in  the 
discharge  of  the  duties  of  this  office,  is  seen  by  con- 
sidering the  extended  number  of  the  publications  of 
the  Society,  all  of  which,  whether  in  manuscripts 
or  in  volumes,  passed  through  the  careful  inspection 
of  the  Committee.  Much  time  at  the  meetings  of 
the  Committee,  and  at  home,  must  necessarily  have 
been  consumed.  Twelve  years  since,  at  the  death  of 
the  lamented  Dr.  Milnor,  he  became  the  Chairman  of 
the  Publishing  and  also  of  the  Executive  Committee. 
A  deservedly  strong  and  affectionate  tribute  to  his 
memory,  in  recognition  of  the  excellence  of  his  charac- 
ter, and  of  the  great  value  of  his  services  to  the  Society, 
has  been  prepared  and  published  by  the  Executive 
Committee. 

He  was  also  actively  and  efficiently  engaged  in  some 
of  the  benevolent  and  educational  institutions  of  this 
city.  At  the  organization  of  the  "Leake  and  Watts 
Orphan  House,"  some  twenty  years  since,  he  became, 
by  the  will  of  the  founder,  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees  of  that  institution,  as  the  senior  minister  of  this 
Church.  His  services  in  behalf  of  this  important  insti- 
tution, which  is  accomplishing  much  good,  have  been 
unwearied  and  most  valuable.  The  amount  of  time  he 
has  devoted,  and  the  wisdom  he  has  exercised  in  his 
constant  care  over  its  interests,  can  only  be  estimated 
by  those  who  are  conversant  with  its  history  and  affiiirs. 
At  the  time  of  his  death,  he  was  President  of  the  Board 
of  Trustees,  and  Chairman  of  the  two  important  com- 
mittees— the  Finance  and  the  House  Committee.  Some 
years  since,  he  was  chosen  a  Trustee  of  Columbia  Col- 


62 

lege,  in  this  city,  wliere  his  services,  in  his  punctual 
attendance,  and  wise  counsel  and  cooperation,  were 
highly  prized,  and  his  character  was  greatly  respected 
and  esteemed.  As  this  College  is  under  the  auspices  of 
a  sister  Christian  denomination,  (the  Episcopal,)  it  was 
a  strong  evidence  of  their  Christian  courtesy,  as  well  as 
a  tribute  to  his  character  and  an  estimate  of  his  business 
talent  and  services,  that  they  placed  him  on  the  most 
important  committees,  and  some  time  since  elected  him 
their  Chairman,  which  office  he  sustained  at  his  death. 
Besides  these  trusts,  he  sustained  some  others  which  did 
not  require  such  an  amount  of  time  or  care — such  as 
Trustee  of  Kutgers  College,  Trustee  of  the  College  of 
Physicians  and  Surgeons  of  this  city,  etc.  There  were 
times  when  he  felt  the  pressure  of  his  multiplied  duties 
to  be  burdensome,  and  was  led  to  reflect  whether  he 
was  not  required  by  advancing  years  to  lighten  the 
burthen,  and  relinquish  some  part  of  the  trusts  com- 
mitted to  him.  He  was  unwilling  to  retain  any  one  of 
these  without  carefully  and  punctually  attending  to 
their  fulfillment.  In  every  case  strong  desire  was  urged 
by  his  associates  that  he  would  remain.  In  these  few 
latter  years,  with  his  health  more  confirmed,  the  amount 
of  his  duties  was  never  greater,  and  he  never  yielded 
more  time  and  toil  in  the  discharge  of  them.  Lately  he 
said  to  me,  on  a  certain  day :  "  I  have  spent  this  day 
six  hours  in  attending  different  boards  and  committees 
to  which  I  belong."  While  thus  engaged  in  full  active 
service,  death  met  him  with  a  sudden  stroke  and  re- 
moved him,  as  it  were,  in  a  moment  from  his  labor  to 
his  rest ;  from  his  toil  and  conflict  to  his  reward  and 
victory. 


We  dwell  for  a  moment  on  tlie  circumstances  of  his 
DEATH.     In  the  fall  of  1827,  wlien  I  settled  liere  as  col- 
league pastor  witli  him,  his  health  was  seriously  im- 
paired, and  there  were  strong  indications  of  seated  dis- 
ease.    By  advice,  he  went  to  the  West-Indies,  and  the 
favorable  influence  of  the  climate,  and  of  the  sea  voyage, 
restored  him  to  comfortable  health.     For  a  series  of 
years,  though  he  never  omitted  nor  relaxed  his  work, 
there  was  a  susceptibility  to  cold  tending  to  his  chest. 
A  few  years  since,  in  1849,  his  health  being  somewhat  im- 
paired, he  went  to  Europe,  where  he  spent  a  few  months.^'' 
After  his  return,  his  health  became  gradually  firm,  and 
his  constitution  for  the  last  three  years  possessed  a  more 
than  usual  degree  of  vigor,  as  was  remarked  by  his 
friends  and  acquaintances.     He  referred  himself  with 
gratitude  to  the  fact.     On  the  Monday  preceding  his 
death  on  Tuesday,  his  colleagues  were  at  his  house,  ac- 
cording to  a  custom  we  have  of  taking  tea  at  each  other's 
houses  alternately  on  the  afternoon  of  the  first  Monday 
in  every  month.     We  congratulated  him  on  his  fine 
health,  and  the  renewal  of  his  youth,  and  greeted  the 
prospect  of  his  prolonged  usefulness,  and  pleasantly  re- 
marked that    "he  might    survive  all  his  colleagues." 
Little  did  we  know  what  a  day  would  bring  forth.     On 
the  next  day  (Tuesday)  he  was  engaged  in  making  pas- 
toral visits,  which  are  now  mournfully  though  pleasantly 
recalled.     On  reaching  home,  shortly  after  four  o'clock 
in  the  afternoon,  he  passed  into  the  piazza  back  of  the 
house,  and  opening  the  blinds,  or  finding  them  open,  he 
by  some  misstep  lost  his  balance,  and  fell  over  headlong 
on  the  stone  pavement  of  the  yard.     On  being  imme- 

*  See  Appendix,  Note  F. 


64 

cliately  taken  up  and  removed  into  tlie  bouse,  there 
were  a  few  moments  of  consciousness,  briefly  responding 
to  an  inquiry  and  uttering  some  ejaculation.  But  in  a 
few  moments  he  sank  into  entire  unconsciousness,  and  so 
remained  until  his  death,  at  eis^ht  o'clock  on  the  eisrhth 
of  January,  in  the  evening.  The  intelligence  came  as  a 
shock,  and  excited  general  and  deep  interest,  not  only 
in  the  Church,  but  in  the  community  also.  This  interest 
was  exhibited  at  his  funeral  in  a  manner  very  rarely  wit- 
nessed.* His  death  came  suddenly,  at  a  time  most  un- 
expected, and  in  a  form  and  manner  most  distressing  to 
our  views  and  feelings.  But  was  there  in  the  time  and 
manner  of  his  death  to  him  evil  ?  Can  we  not  in  this 
event,  when  the  tide  of  strong  feeling  subsides,  and 
Mth  is  exercised  in  the  clear  vision  of  God's  word  and 
Providence  combined,  see  even  mercy  to  him  in  it  ? 
He  was  found  workinsr  in  the  harness  when  his  Saviour 
called  him.  He  was  watching  at  his  post  when  the 
Lord  came.  I  have  heard  him  say,  with  the  deep  im- 
pression of  humility  and  piety,  that  he  should  dread 
being  laid  up  from  activity  and  usefulness.  I  replied 
that  "  We  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  time  and  circum- 
stances of  our  departure.  These  were  in  the  Lord's 
hands.  There  were  two  kinds  of  service  to  which  he 
called  us :  doing  and  suffering  his  will."  He  replied  : 
"  It  is  so  ;  it  is  our  duty  and  mercy  to  meet  his  will  in 
life,  and  then  be  ready  for  death  as  the  Lord  shall  ap- 
point." As  I  was  standing  by  the  death-bed  of  my  col- 
leasfue,  I  said  to  his  aflPectionate  son :  "  It  is  sad  to  mark 
your  dear  father  lying  there,  and  not  to  be  able  to  hold 
outward  communion  with  him.     But  think  of  this,  that 

*  See  Appendix,  Note  G. 


65 

you  have  better  evidence  and  sweeter  comfort  than  any 
circumstances  connected  with  death  could  furnish  you. 
You  have  the  evidence  of  his  whole  life,  the  memory  of 
which  is  deeply  engraved  in  your  heart."  In  the  church 
of  which  the  Rev.  John  Newton  was  pastor,  there  was 
a  venerable  Christian  lady,  a  mother  in  Israel,  and 
greatly  endeared.  She  died  suddenly.  Mr.  Newton 
meeting  one  of  his  congregation,  gave  him  the  intelli- 
gence. He  said  :  "  I  suppose  she  gave  striking  and 
precious  evidences  on  her  death-bed."  Mr.  Newton  re- 
sponded :  "  She  gave  the  brightest  and  most  delightful 
of  all  evidences.  She  could  not  utter  a  word,  but  the 
Lord  took  her  in  a  moment.  The  evidence  she  gave 
was  that  of  a  close  walk  with  God  for  fifty  or  sixty 
years." 

The  suddenness  of  the  death  of  Dr.  Knox  in  the  ac- 
tive discharge  of  his  duties,  recalls  to  mind  the  death  of 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Livingston,  who  forty  years  ministered 
with  great  acceptance  and  usefulness  in  this  church,  and 
who  died  in  1825,  at  the  head  of  our  Theological  Semi- 
nary, at  the  age  of  seventy-nine.  While  habitually  strong 
in  faith  and  cheerful  hope,  he  w^ould  express  his  fear  of 
lingering  disease  laying  him  aside  from  his  duties,  and 
of  the  pangs  of  dying.  It  pleased  the  Lord  to  spare 
him  these.  He  had  been  employed  during  the  day  in 
lecturing  to  his  classes,  with  almost  more  than  his  ac- 
customed vivacity,  and  spent  the  evening  wdth  some 
Christian  friends  at  his  house  in  interesting  and  edifying 
religious  conversation.  He  retired  to  bed  in  the  best 
of  health.  In  the  morning,  as  he  did  not  appear  at  the 
accustomed  hour  for  family  devotion,  his  room  was  en- 
5 


6Q 

tered,  and  he  was  found  sweetly  sleeping  in  death. 
Every  feature  was  calm  and  natural,  and  the  bed-clothes 
were  not  in  the  least  disturbed.  He  must  gently  and 
at  once  have  breathed  out  his  spirit.  The  death  of  our 
deceased  friend  and  brother  had  not  in  its  suddenness 
an  aspect  pleasant  like  that  of  Dr.  Livingston,  but  it 
was  equally  safe  and  blessed.  The  Master  in  this  provi- 
dence spake  to  him,  "  Come  up  hither,"  and  his  ran- 
somed spirit  ascended  to  be  with  Jesus. 

Two  remarks  drawn  from  the  subject  will  be  briefly 
stated. 

First.  We  contemplate  in  the  life  and  death  of  our 
friend  and  pastor  the  greatness  of  goodness.  In 
goodness  the  mind,  heart,  and  life  meet  together  in  har- 
mony. The  sweet  sympathies  of  a  sanctified  nature,  and 
the  ennobling  virtues  of  a  holy  life  invest  the  good  man 
as  a  beautiful  garment.  There  is  emphasis  in  the  words 
of  Paul  in  the  fifth  chapter  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans, 
"  Scarcely  for  a  righteous  man  (one  of  strict  integrity 
and  consistency)  will  one  die,  yet  peradventure  for  a 
GOOD  man  one  would  even  dare  to  die."  Barnabas  was 
"  a  GOOD  MAN,  full  of  faith  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost." 
This  is  the  highest  style  of  man.  Is  there  any  greatness 
superior  to  this  ?  When  I  was  in  London  in  1846,  I 
heard  the  Rev.  Edward  Bickersteth  referred  to  as  the 
good  Mr.  Bickersteth.  He  is  since  deceased,  and  is 
known  among  us  by  his  valuable  religious  writings, 
and  by  the  delineation  of  his  life  and  character 
in  his  biography.  He  was  plain  in  his  appearance, 
but  his  countenance  at  once  attracted  you  by  the 
mild  and  devout  spirit  which  beamed  from  it,  and  when 


67 

he  spoke,  his  words  fell  like  the  dew  of  Hermon.  I 
then  thought  that  this  is  the  greatness  which  should  be 
coveted.  I  have  heard  the  same  attribute  conferred 
upon  my  lamented  colleague.  None  more  grateful  or  of 
higher  worth  could  be  conferred.  Through  a  prolonged 
life  he  has  gained  the  united  conviction  and  confession 
of  his  goodness^  tried  in  every  circumstance  and  relation 
of  life,  and  combinino:  the  best  and  noblest  attributes  of 
character,  and  now  at  his  death  on  that  beautiful  vest- 
ure of  goodness  not  a  stain  can  be  traced.  When  the 
lamented  and  lono^-to-be-remembered  Milxor  was  in 
civil  life,  and  in  the  halls  of  legislation,  and  evinced  his 
finely  formed  character,  there  was  a  worldly  greatness 
pertaining  to  him  ;  but  when  he  became  the  subject  of 
divine  grace,  and  devoted  himself  to  the  ministry,  exhi- 
biting through  his  whole  subsequent  course  the  Christ- 
ian graces,  and  exerting  a  beneficent  influence,  he  at- 
tained a  greatness  he  never  had  before,  the  greatness  of 
goodness.     This  is  the  greatness  of  our  own  Freliis^g- 

IIUYSEN. 

My  second  remark,  oi^  which  I  shall  not  expand, 

IS,  THE  mutual  privileges  AND  RESPONSIBILITIES,  WHICH 

EXIST  retween  3HNISTERS  AND  PEOPLE.  In  this  rela- 
tion there  is  a  sacredness,  value,  and  importance  to  be 
found  in  no  other.  The  province  of  this  ministry  is  not 
with  the  fleeting  interests  of  time,  and  the  vanities  of 
earth,  but  it  seeks  to  form  a  spiritual  dominion  within 
the  soul  of  man,  to  restore  the  sinner  lost  in  guilt  and 
depravity  to  the  favor,  communion,  and  service  of  God, 
and  to  train  him  for  the  heaven  of  holiness  and  happi- 
ness.    When  Paul  received  the  commission  for  the  mi- 


68 

nistry,  the  object  was  stated,  "  To  open  their  eyes,  and 
to  turn  them  from  darkness  to  light,  and  from  the  power 
of  Satan  unto  God,  that  they  may  receive  forgiveness 
of  sins,  and  inheritance  among  them  who  are  sanctified 
by  faith  that  is  in  me."  In  the  last  chapter  of  the 
Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  there  are  two  distinct  verses 
which  bear  upon  this  mutual  privilege  and  responsibil- 
ity, namely  :  "  Obey  them  that  have  the  rule  over  you 
for  they  watch  for  your  souls  as  they  that  must  give  ac- 
count, that  they  may  do  it  with  joy,  and  not  with  grief." 
What  a  touching  and  expressive  description  of  the  mi- 
nisterial office  !  "  They  watch  for  souls^  they  must  give 
account'''  The  other  verse  respects  the  remembrance 
of  the  ministry  of  those,  who  have  ceased  from  their  la- 
bor, and  entered  into  their  rest.  Verse  7  :  "  Remember 
them  which  have  the  rule  over  you,  who  have  spoken 
to  you  the  word  of  God,  considering  the  end  of  their 
conversation." 

The  bereavement,  by  the  death  of  Dr.  Kuox,  in  his 
family  circle  will  be  deeply  felt.  Besides  his  children, 
nine  in  number,  there  are  relatives  (orphans  and  others) 
who  have  experienced  a  tender  kindness  and  a  watchful 
care,  parental  in  their  nature,  who  will  not  fail  to  cherish 
feelings  of  a  filial  kind  in  memory  of  him.  That  prudent 
care,  that  tender  sympathy,  that  ready  aid  which  he 
ever  sought  to  cherish  and  extend,  those  wise  instruc- 
tions which  he  gently  and  seasonably  administered,  the 
example  so  bright  and  uniform,  which  he  exhibited  in 
the  domestic  scene,  will  be  found  no  more.  But  it  may 
well  call  for  gratitude  that  he  was  spared  so  long  to  a 
good  age,  and  that  the  children  reached  their  maturity 


69 

before  their  father  and  mother  were  taken  from  them. 
Pleasantly  will  they  recall  the  tenor  of  their  pious  and 
lovely  lives,  and  the  comfort  of  the  assurance  of  their 
possession  of  the  inheritance  of  saints  in  light,  is  richly 
furnished  to  them.  '^  A  good  man  leaves  an  inheritance 
to  children's  children."  Children  of  my  deceased  friend, 
more  precious  than  all  of  gold  and  silver  is  the  inherit- 
ance, which  parental  piety,  a  holy  walk  and  conversa- 
tion, and  fervent  prayers  bestow  upon  you.  I  have  wit- 
nessed his  fervent  anxiety  for  your  spiritual  welfare. 
May  the  grace  which  has  gathered  so  large  a  proportion 
of  you  into  the  Church  by  open  profession,  gather  all  of 
you  into  its  bosom — let  the  death  of  your  father  be  a 
cord  of  love  to  draw  you  close  to  the  Saviour.  May 
the  God  and  Saviour  of  your  parents  be  your  God  and 
Saviour ! 

His  COLLEAGUES  tenderly  feel  their  loss  in  his  death. 
Uniformly  very  pleasant  has  been  their  personal  inter- 
course with  him,  and  uninterrupted  have  been  their 
harmony  and  mutual  confidence  in  their  common  coun- 
sels and  labors  in  this  ministerial  and  pastoral  charge. 
I  have  often  felt,  and  perhaps  have  expressed  the  feel- 
ing, that  I  hoped  never  to  see  the  day  when  I  should 
become  the  senior  actincr  minister  of  this  Church.  But 
God  has  in  a  remarkable  and  impressive  manner  brought 
it  to  pass.  About  fourteen  years  since,  our  colleague. 
Dr.  Brownlee,  was,  while  in  the  vigor  of  health  and 
amid  active  labor,  suddenly  and  in  a  moment  prostrated 
by  an  apoplectic  attack,  paralyzing  him  on  one  side- 
For  a  time  he  appeared  to  be  nigh  unto  death  ;  but 
gradually  and  slowly  he   convalesced,  until  for  some 


70 

years  back  lie  has  enjoyed  a  comfortable  state  of  body 
and  of  mind,  but  still  without  the  least  prospect  of  be- 
ing restored  to  active  duty.  'Now  suddenly  our  senior 
pastor,  while  walking  with  God,  was  taken  by  his  Sav- 
iour. How  impressive  the  admonition  of  these  provi- 
dences !  "  There  is  but  a  step  between  us  and  death." 
"  Work  w^hile  it  is  day ;  the  night  cometli  in  which  no 
man  can  work."  The  shadows  of  evening  are  closing 
around  me.  I  am  but  fifteen  months  the  junior  in 
age  of  my  deceased  colleague,  though  I  have  passed 
more  years  in  the  ministry,  having  been  settled  at  Hope- 
well, in  Dutchess  county,  in  the  fall  of  1812,  whence  I 
removed  to  this  city,  in  the  fall  of  1827.  I  feel  the  need 
of  a  larger  share  of  divine  grace  to  enable  me  to  fill  up 
(what  must  be  at  the  best)  the  small  remnant  of  my 
days  in  the  discharge  of  duties  which  may  devolve  upon 
me.  My  colleagues  join  most  cordially  in  the  tribute  I 
have  feebly  endeavored  to  pay  to  the  memory  of  our 
deceased  friend  and  senior  colleague.  I  trust  we  are 
united  in  a  threefold  cord  of  affection  and  confidence, 
and  may  this  afilicting  stroke  draw  us  still  closer  to  each 
other,  and  to  the  Redeemer.  While  we  value  your 
affectionate  confidence,  we  invite  your  united  prayers 
and  cooperation,  that  our  ministry  among  you  may  be 
in  the  "  fullness  of  the  blessings  of  the  Gospel  of  jDeace." 
The  CoNSiSTOEY  of  this  Church,  with  whom  our  de- 
parted friend  was  associated  in  its  government,  mourn 
over  him  as  a  standard-bearer  fallen  by  their  side. 
While  mourning  over  their  loss,  they  should  find  and 
feel  an  incentive  to  increased  watchfulness  and  fidelity 
in  the  discharge  of  the  trust  committed  to  them.     "  Be 


71 

thou  faithful  unto  death,  and  I  will  give  thee  a  crown 
of  life."  God,  by  removing  from  the  midst  of  the 
Church  one  by  one  for  a  short  time  past,  calls  us  to 
solemn  reflection.  Since  May  last,  five  who  have  borne 
the  office  of  elder,  have  been  called  to  the  sanctuary 
above  ;  four  at  the  age  of  eighty,  or  a  little  upwards, 
and  the  fifth  at  the  age  of  seventy,  all  men  of  tried 
worth  and  Christian  character.  While  the  fathers  are 
thus  passing  away,  let  us  look  to  Him  who  can  supply 
their  places.  May  his  Sj)irit  be  poured  forth  upon  our 
seed,  and  his  blessing  upon  our  ofi'spring,  and  thus  may 
we  find  it  verified,  that  "  instead  of  the  fathers  shall  be 
the  children  who  shall  be  princes  on  the  earth." 

To    the    MEMBERS  OF  THIS  CHURCH  AND  COXGREGATION, 

I  would  say,  cherish  the  memory  of  your  loved  deceased 
pastor,  and  let  that  memory  be  pleasant  not  only,  but 
also  profitable.  It  is  said  that  Dr.  Payson  on  his  death- 
bed directed  that  a  label  should  be  placed  on  his  breast 
as  he  lay  in  his  coffin,  with  a  clear  and  legible  inscrip- 
tion :    "  KeMEMBER  THE  WORDS  THAT   I   SPAKE   UNTO    YOU 

WHILE  I  WAS  YET  WITH  YOU."  Thus  cvciy  ouc  wlio  ap- 
proached to  take  a  last  view  of  the  precious  remains, 
had  this  distinctly  in  sight.  Though  this  admonition  is 
not  brought  in  the  same  form  and  manner,  yet  it  is 
forcibly  and  tenderly  impressed  upon  us  by  the  event 
of  death  which  has  invaded  the  ministry  of  this  Church. 
"  He  being  dead  yet  speaketh."  Of  the  fruits  of  his  long 
ministry,  a  large  proportion  have  preceded  him  in  their 
entrance  into  the  heavenly  rest,  and  they  are  now  join- 
ins^  in  the  common  sons:  of  the  redeemed.  The  others, 
who  are  yet  on  their  way  of  pilgrimage  and   in  the 


72 

spiritual  warfare,  will  ever  cherisli  the  most  grateful 
emotions  in  memory  of  him,  which  time  and  death  will 
not  weaken  or  efface.  Let  all  who  have  sat  under  the 
droppings  of  his  ministry,  and  been  conversant  with  his 
life  and  walk,  but  have  not  yet  embraced  the  Saviour 
and  devoted  themselves  to  his  service,  now  seek  to  gain 
a  blessing  from  his  death  which  they  failed  to  gain  in 
his  life.  Within  a  few  months  God  has  removed,  by 
death,  three  of  our  prominent  and  most  valuable  minis- 
ters in  our  Church  at  large :  Professor  Ludlow,  than 
whom  no  one  has  been  more  influential  in  promoting 
the  interests  of  the  Reformed  Dutch  Church,  and  who 
sustained  the  distinguished  offices  which  he  held  in  the 
pastoral  charge,  at  the  head  of  a  distinguished  literary 
institution,  and  in  the  professorate  in  our  Theological 
Seminary  with  signal  ability  and  high  reputation ; 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Polhemus,  called  away  in  the  meridian  of 
life,  in  the  vigor  of  ripe  manhood,  just  after  he  was 
transferred  to  an  opening  field  of  great  promise  of  useful- 
ness, beloved  in  life  and  lamented  in  death ;  and  now 
our  lamented  Dr.  Knox.  These  bereavements  bear  an 
impressive  lesson  to  those  who  are  in  the  ministry,  and 
should  lead  us,  and  the  churches  among  whom  we  labor, 
to  go  from  the  instruments  to  the  Head  of  the  Church 
and  the  Lord  of  the  harvest,  in  firm  trust  and  fervent 
prayer,  that  he  would  pour  a  double  portion  of  the 
unction  of  the  Holy  Spirit  upon  us,  that  he  would  estab- 
lish our  section  of  Zion  in  abiding  and  increasing  peace 
and  prosperity,  and  that  he  would  for  this  end  raise  up 
continually  a  ministry  endowed  with  gifts  and  grace, 
thoroughly  trained,  and  eminently  diligent,  faithful,  and, 
under  God's  blessing,  successful. 


EXTRACTS  FROM  SERMONS. 


Concluding  Remarks  of  the  Sermon  preached  by  the  Rev.  Thomas 
E.  Vermilye,  D.D.,  in  the  Middle  Dutch  Churchy  {La  Fayette 
Placed  on  January  lOth^  1858,  from  the  text  Hebrews  6:  12; 
^^Be  not  sloth ftd :  but  folloicers  of  them  who  through  faith  and 
patience  inherit  the  promises.'''* 


Our  subject  finds  a  practical  application  and  use  in 
tlie  overwhelming  act  of  Divine  Providence  we  this  day 
mourn. 

I  dare  not  yet  tiust  myself  to  enlarge  upon  it,  nor 
upon  tlie  character  and  worth  of  him  who  is  gone,  and 
whose  loss,  to  us  his  colleagues,  to  the  people,  to  the 
Church  at  large,  and  the  varied  institutions  of  benevo- 
lence and  learning  with  which  he  was  connected,  will 
be  long  and  deeply  felt.  We  shall  miss  his  kindly  asso- 
ciation and  his  wise  counsels ;  you  will  miss  him  from 
those  pulpits  he  has  for  more  than  forty  years  occupied, 
from  the  domestic  circles  and  scenes  of  affliction,  where 
he  was  always  so  prompt  and  constant  an  attendant : 
where  his  Christian  words  and  his  warm  sympathizing 
heart  always  poured  whatever  alleviation  human  sym- 
pathy can  pour  into  the  wounded  spirit.  To  the  last 
he  was  assiduous  in  duty  ;  and  I  esteem  it  a  fit  and 
beautiful  closing  incident  that  he  came  in  from  pastoral 
visitations  but  the  moment  before  the  fatal  event. 
That  form  so  familiar  we  shall  see  no  more.  The  pas- 
tor has  ended  his  labor  and  has  gone  to  his  rest.  The 
father  is  removed  from  the  domestic  circle ;  the  com- 


74 

panion,  tlie  friend,  lies  locked  in  liis  last  sleep,  which 
only  the  voice  of  the  archangel  and  the  trump  of  God 
shall  break.  No  more  shall  we  see  his  face  in  the  flesh. 
Very  dear  wert  thou  to  me,  my  brother,  and  years  of 
intimate  intercourse  have  but  the  more  impressed  me 
with  the  assurance  of  thy  modest,  constant  worth.  I 
found  thee  an  humble,  consistent  Christian  ;  an  intelli- 
gent, faithful  friend  ;  a  true  man,  fit  to  be  confided  in  • 
and  so  have  many  found  thee.  Thy  work  is  now  done  : 
thy  record  is  made  up :  thou  hast  been  active  and  faith- 
ful unto  death  :  thou  art,  at  this  moment,  inheriting  the 
promises :  thy  spirit  wears  the  white  robe  of  victory, 
thy  voice  is  now  tuned  to  the  song  of  Moses  and  the 
lamb :  thou  hast  entered  the  kingdom :  thou  hast  gotten 
the  crown.  Farewell,  till  we  meet — oh  !  may  we  meet 
in  a  better  world.  But  ye,  brethren,  remember  them 
that  have  had  the  rule  over  you,  and  have  spoken  unto 
you  the  word  of  God :  whose  faith  follow,  considering 
the  end  of  their  conversation.  "Be  not  slothful:  but 
followers  of  them  who  through  faith  and  patience  in- 
herit the  promises." 


Concluding  Remarks  of  the  Sermon  preached  by  the  Rev.  T.  W. 
Chambers,  D.D.,  in  the  Middle  Dutch  Churchy  {La  Fayette 
Place,)  January  17,  185 8, /rom  the  text :  '-'■  Remember  them  who 
have  the  rule  over  you,  who  have  spoken  unto  you  the  word  of 
God  ;  whose  faith  folloio,  considering  the  end  of  their  conversa- 
tion.'''^    Hebreics  13:7. 

%  ^c  *K-  ^-  -H-  -Sf  -JS-  'A  ^ 

You  have  no  doubt  all  anticipated  the  application 
of  this  subject.  After  the  lapse  of  nearly  a  quarter  of 
a  century,  the  grave  has  opened  to  receive  another  of 
the  collegiate  pastors  dying  in  the  service  of  this  church. 
In  July,  183o,  the  excellent  Dr.  Kuypers  was  buried  ; 
last  week  all  that  was  mortal  of  Dr.  Knox  was  com- 


75 

mitted  to  the  tomb.  It  is  not  my  purpose  now  to  dilate 
upon  the  general  character  of  our  late  venerated  leader. 
That  has  been  wisely  reserved  for  another  occasion  and 
an  abler  hand.  My  object  is  simply,  in  the  spirit  of  the 
text,  to  indicate  some  of  those  traits  of  Christian  cha- 
racter in  which  it  is  your  duty  to  imitate  him  whose  sud- 
den departure  we  all  mourn.  I  say  Christian  character, 
for  his  personal  excellencies  as  a  man,  and  his  official 
worth  as  a  minister,  are  not  embraced  in  the  scope  to 
which  the  text  limits  our  thoughts.  Let  me  call  upon 
you  to  remember  and  follow  your  departed  leader. 

First.  In  Ms  fixedness  of  religious  principle.  With- 
out parade  and  without  noise  he  moved  on  in  the  jour- 
ney of  life  with  such  simplicity  and  godly  sincerity,  that 
we  all  expected  from  him  the  appropriate  exhibitions  of 
Christian  principle  called  for  from  time  to  time,  with 
just  as  much  confidence  as  we  anticipate  the  movements 
of  the  stars  in  their  courses.     Nor  were  we  disappointed. 

His  aim  was  ever  to  do  that  which  is  right.  So  mani- 
fest was  this,  that  no  man  would  have  dared  to  approach 
him  with  an  improper  proposah  All  who  knew  him 
even  slightly  had  the  profoundest  conviction  that  he 
was  an  immovably  upright  man — not  to  be  swerved  by 
caprice,  or  interest,  or  passion,  or  importunity,  from 
what  he  judged  to  be  the  path  of  duty.  Is  this  your 
character,  my  hearer  ?  If  not,  then  you  have  something 
yet  to  learn  from  him  who  lies  sleeping  in  yonder  vault. 
Remember  him  and  follow  him.  Mark  the  perfect  man 
and  behold  the  upright. 

Second.  His  ahoiinding  symixitliy  loitli  Ids  fellow-men 
was  another  trait  worthy  of  our  imitation.  In  this 
grace  of  character  he  was  peculiar,  if  not  unequalled. 
He  fulfilled  to  the  letter  the  apostolic  precept:  "Re- 
joice with  them  that  rejoice,  and  weep  with  them  that 
weep."     Never  was  there  a  man  who  could  so  accom- 


76 

modate  his  own  sentiments  to  the  state  of  others.  If  in 
deep  waters  himself,  still  he  could  sincerely  and  cheer- 
fully congratulate  others  on  their  possessing  the  favors 
of  a  benignant  providence.  Yet  not  less  readily  did  his 
tears  fall  and  his  heart  beat  for  those  in  distress,  how- 
ever happy  his  own  situation  might  be.  It  was  this 
trait  which  gave  such  unspeakable  value  to  his  visits  in 
the  sick  room  and  the  house  of  mourning.  The  suf- 
ferers felt  that  he  was  there  not  only  officially  but  as  a 
friend  ;  that  he  entered  into  their  feelings ;  and  that  the 
desire  of  his  heart  was  to  see  them  relieved  and  com- 
forted."^ And  in  this  he  is  eminently  to  be  followed. 
We  have  no  right  to  seclude  ourselves  from  the  cares, 
interests  and  sorrows  of  others.  As  Christians  we  must 
feel  with  and  for  them,  and  show  that  feeling  in  the 
proper  way  and  place.  If  the  disposition  does  not  exist 
naturally  in  us,  we  are  to  cultivate  it,  as  did  my  late 
colleague.  He  must  have  had  by  nature  a  sympathiz- 
ing temperament,  but  we  can  not  doubt  that  grace 
heightened  that  constitutional  gift ;  and  the  sympathies 
which  otherwise  had  been  restricted  to  the  narrow  cir- 
cle of  friends,  were  spread  out  till  they  took  in  all  men 
and  all  circumstances.  If  we  all  followed  his  faith  in 
this  respect,  what  a  happy  church  and  community  would 
this  become  ! 

Third.  His  liaUtual  courtesy  is  another  point  for  imi- 
tation. His  dignity,  so  well  suited  to  his  age  and  sta- 
tion, was  beautifully  tempered  by  a  Tvinning  courtesy, 
which  was  not  reserved  for  great  occasions  or  important 
persons,  but  because  it  was  the  habit  of  his  life  and  was 
therefore  shown  to  all  without  distinction  of  age  or  po- 
sition or  character.     No  man  ever  saw  Dr.  Knox  do  a 

*  It  was  doubtless  this  sympathy  which  more  than  any  other  one  trait  so  endeared 
him  to  his  people,  and  made  the  news  of  his  death  strike  them  like  a  sore  personal 
Calamity,  as  if  every  one  had  lost  a  dear  and  valued  friend. 


77 

rude  thing.  A  favor  conferred  was  doubled  by  the 
raanner  of  bestowing  it,  while  the  inevitable  pain  of  re- 
fusal was  greatly  softened  by  the  tender  consideration 
with  which  it  was  communicated.  Herein  it  behooves 
all  to  follow  him.  So  much  of  the  comfort  of  our  daily 
lives  depends  upon  the  manner  of  doing  and  saying 
things,  that  it  is  a  Christian  duty  when  we  see  a  fair 
model  of  courtesy,  to  copy  that  model,  and  as  far  as 
possible  make  it  our  own. 

Four.  The  same  may  be  said  of  our  departed  friend's 
qovernnient  of  the  tongue.  He  was  remarkable  not  only 
for  his  abstinence  from  evil  speaking  in  all  its  forms, 
but  also  from  rash  speaking.  He  opened  his  mouth 
with  wisdom,  and  in  his  tongue  was  the  law  of  kind- 
ness. Taking  his  full  share  alike  in  common  conversa- 
tion and  in  more  formal  discussions,  he  yet  avoided  the 
unkind,  uncharitable,  indiscreet,  or  unbecoming  speeches, 
which  so  often  mar  the  intercourse  even  of  otherwise 
good  men.  Kecognizing  the  importance  of  that  little 
member,  which,  the  wise  man  says,  has  death  and  life  in 
its  power,  he  used  it,  but  used  it  wisely,  not  content 
with  a  mere  negative  virtue  which,  as  we  all  know,  may 
consist  with  a  dreary  and  most  wearisome  inanity,  but 
aiming  to  have  "  his  speech  alway  with  grace,  seasoned 
with  salt,"  that  is,  endued  with  a  hallo  v\^ed  and  whole- 
some pungency.  Having  then  such  an  example  of  wis- 
dom in  the  government  of  the  tongue,  let  us  follow  it, 
and  strive  to  get  the  same  eminence  in  that  virtue 
which  has  so  much  to  do  with  the  comfort  and  useful- 
ness of  Christians  in  all  ranks  and  conditions  of  life. 

Five.  The  list  of  Dr.  Knox's  exemplary  virtues  is  ftir 
from  being  exhausted,  but  I  have  time  to  touch  upon 
only  one  more — his  diligence  in  doing  good.  It  is  true 
that  his  example  here  bears  primarily  upon  those  of  the 
same  calling,  yet  it  is  appropriate  to  all  as  prompting 


78 

them  to  be  as  faithful  in  their  sphere  as  he  was  in  his. 
The  pulpit  and  parochial  cares  of  this  large  charge 
pressed  heavily  upon  him  as  the  senior  pastor.  Yet  when 
did  lie  ever  stand  in  this  or  any  other  pulpit,  without 
careful  preparation  ?  What  house  of  mourning  failed  to 
be  lio-htened  by  his  genial  presence,  or  what  sick  bed 
was  unsoothed  by  his  words  of  consolation  ?  Old  and 
young,  rich  and  poor,  high  and  low,  are  alike  witnesses 
to  his  diligence.  But  as  if  direct  ministerial  labors  were 
not  enough,  he  for  the  Master's  sake  accepted  from  time 
to  time,  as  Providence  called  him,  posts  in  various  im- 
portant institutions,  literary,  charitable,  and  religious, 
which  made  heavy  draughts  upon  his  time  and  strength, 
but  he  met  those  draughts  with  undeviating  promptness 
and  zeal.  They  consumed  all  his  leisure,  and  often 
burdened  his  mind  with  serious  cares  and  responsibili- 
ties, but  he  did  not  complain.  His  business  was  to  do 
good,  and  he  did  it.  And  never  was  he  more  busy  in 
this  way  than  in  the  closing  years  of  his  life.  The  fresh 
memory  of  them  gives  point  to  the  admonition  in  the 
text  to  follow  his  faith.  As  you  recur  to  the  multiplied 
instances  your  own  eyes  have  seen  of  his  unceasing  dili- 
gence, remember  that  this  is  a  stimulus  to  you  to  go 
and  do  likewise  in  your  own  appropriate  sphere  of 
Christian  activity. 

Let  me  close  by  urging  the  impenitent  among  you  to 
follow  their  departed  pastor  in  his  simple  faith  in  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ.  That  faith  he  preached  with  great 
plainness  and  simplicity,  and  confirmed  his  preaching 
by  a  godly  and  consistent  life.  He  kept  back  none  of 
the  counsel  of  God,  but  declared  it  all,  publicly  and 
from  house  to  house,  and  that  for  a  period  longer  than 
many  of  you  can  remember.  That  faithful  and  affec- 
tionate ministry  is  now  closed,  but  its  consequences  are 
not  closed.     There  is  a  day  coming  when  you  will  have 


79 

to  give  account  for  the  clear  instructions,  and  solemn 
warnings,  and  tender  entreaties,  which  you  have  heard 
from  the  lips  now  sealed  in  the  silence  of  the  grave. 
That  venerable  form  which  you  have  so  often  seen  in 
this  sacred  place,  you  will  see  yet  once  more  in  a  place 
infinitely  more  solemn  and  august,  and  then,  when  con- 
fronted with  the  Judge,  you  will  be  asked  what  heed 
you  gave  to  the  message  he  brought.  On  the  answer 
your  everlasting  doom  will  turn.  If  still  impenitent 
then  he  who  while  on  earth  so  often  invited  you  to  the 
Saviour,  must  stand  up  to  bear  witness  against  you,  that 
when  God  called  you  refused,  when  He  stretched  out 
His  hands  you  would  not  regard.  Shun,  shun  that  fear- 
ful testimony.  Even  now  recall  the  words  of  that  voice 
which  you  will  never  again  hear  in  this  world,  and  de- 
termine by  God's  grace  to  follow  him  even  as  he  followed 
Christ.  Rest  not  until  you  have  entered  the  strait  gate, 
and  acquired  like  precious  faith  with  him.  Then  he 
will  be  a  witness  for  you  instead  of  against  you,  and 
you  will  meet  him  in  joy,  and  peace,  and  glory — meet 
him  never  again  to  part.  Which  may  God  grant  for 
Christ's  sake ! 


Close  of  a  Discourse^  preached  in  the  North  Dutch  Church,  Alba- 
ny^ by  Rev.  Dr.  Rogers,  in  memory  of  Rev.  John  Kxox,  D.D., 
on  Sunday  evening,  January  24,  185 8, /Vow  the  text:  ^''  For  all 
flesh  is  as  grass,  and  all  the  glory  of  man  as  the  flower  of  grass. 
The  grass  withereth,  and  thefloirer  thereof  falleth  away.  Rut 
theicord  of  the  Lord  endureth  forever.'''' — 1  Peter  1  :  24,  25. 

The  views  which  have  now  been  presented  are  highly 
appropriate  to  the  circumstances  in  which  our  whole 
church  is  at  this  moment  placed.  The  inscrutable  pro- 
vidence of  God  in  a  few  brief  months  has  made  sad 
breaches  among  the  standard-bearers  in  our  Zion.    Our 


80 

men  of  strength,  and  wisdom,  and  usefulness;  the  excel- 
lent, the  honored,  and  the  loved  are  falling  around  us. 
Three  distinguished  names  have,  in  the  short  space  of 
four  months,  been  blotted  from  our  ministerial  roll. 
Polhemus,  Ludlow,  Knox,  are  no  more.  One  of  our 
youngest  churches  sits  in  her  widowhood,  and  mourns 
the  departure  of  her  first  and  only  pastor.  From  the 
most  venerable,  and  the  oldest,  comes  also  a  wail  of  sor- 
I'ovv  over  the  grave  of  him  who,  for  forty-two  years, 
has  gone  in  and  out  before  her,  and  broken  to  her  the 
bread  of  life.  To  his  memory  our  few  remaining  words 
Avill  be  devoted. 

The  intelligence  which  so  suddenly  and  unexpectedly 
informed  us  that  the  Rev.  Dr.  John  Knox,  Senior  Pastor 
of  the  Collegiate  Dutch  Church  of  New-York,  had  been 
taken  from  us  in  the  midst  of  his  health  and  usefulness 
by  an  unforeseen  and  fatal  casualty,  has  excited  a  thrill 
of  the  sincerest  grief  throughout  our  entire  denomina- 
tion. For  forty-two  years  he  had  been  connected  with 
our  most  ancient  and  most  important  Church.  His 
early  and  his  later  years  had  been  devoted  to  its  inter- 
ests. For  a  quarter  of  a  century  he  had  been  its  senior 
pastor,  and  had  long  stood  in  the  front  rank  of  our  dis- 
tinguished clergy.  Probably  the  decease  of  no  other 
one  of  our  ministers  could  sever  so  many  ties,  and  be 
felt  in  so  many  directions.  His  long,  unbroken  course 
of  public  labor  in  one  sphere,  and  that  the  great  me- 
tropolis of  our  country,  would  naturally  keep  him  in 
the  eye  of  the  Christian  public,  while  the  dignity,  abil- 
ity, propriety,  purity,  and  efficiency  with  which  he  filled 
that  sphere,  insured  him  in  no  ordinary  degree  the  re- 
spect, the  confidence,  the  approbation,  and  the  affection 
of  the  whole  Church  of  God.  The  simple  fact  that  Dr. 
Knox  lived  nearly  half  a  century  in  the  midst  of  the 
toils,  temptations,  and   responsibilities  of  his  exalted 


81 

station,  and  pufsued  the  even  tenor  of  his  way,  as  a 
humble,  faithful  minister  of  God  ;  never  stooping  to 
seek  for  popularity  by  arts  which  degrade  the  pulpit : 
never  seeking  to  preach  other  than  the  simple  Gospel, 
in  the  simplicity  of  Christ ;  always  mindful  of  the  Mas- 
ter, rather  than  the  servant ;  and  steadily  growing  in 
the  reverence  and  esteem  of  the  whole  Christian  com- 
munity until  he  was  literally  burdened  with  the  most 
weighty  and  precious  interests  of  the  cause  of  religion 
and  philanthropy ;  this  simple  history  is  his  noblest 
eulogy,  and  contains  the  highest  tribute  to  his  exalted 
worth.  I  remember  him  from  my  earliest  years.  He 
entered  upon  his  labors  in  my  native  city  nearly  two 
years  before  my  birth ;  and  as  far  back  as  I  can  re- 
member any  thing,  I  remember  the  high  character 
which  he  sustained  as  a  Christian  minister  and  a  Christ- 
ian gentleman,  and  the  distinguished  estimation  in  which 
even  in  his  early  ministry  he  was  held  in  that  city.  He 
was  for  years  the  pastor  of  some  of  my  own  family 
relatives,  and  I  know  that  in  this  delicate  and  solemn 
relation,  no  man  could  be  more  excellent  or  more  be- 
loved. He  was  a  man  of  symmetrical  and  well-balanced 
mind.  He  was  an  edifying  and  instructive  preacher. 
There  was  no  one  quality  of  mind  or  heart  which  stood 
forth  in  bold  or  dazzling  prominence,  but  there  was  a 
most  happy  and  harmonious  combination  of  excellencies 
which  fitted  him  in  a  high  degree  for  solid  and  perma- 
nent usefulness.  As  a  counsellor  it  will  be  hard  to  find 
his  equal.  He  was  cautious  without  timidity,  firm  with- 
out obstinacy,  conservative  without  stagnation,  and  pro- 
gressive without  radicalism.  The  many  religious  and 
benevolent  institutions  with  which  he  was  connected, 
both  denominational  and  general,  will  miss  him  sorely 
from  their  counsels.  Every  good  cause  will  miss  him. 
The  cause  of  Christian  education,  the  cause  of  religious 
6 


82 

literature,  the  cause  of  the  widow  and  the  orphan,  and 
many  others,  have  lost  a  warm,  judicious,  and  steadfast 
friend.  While  the  ancient  Church,  which  he  served  so 
faithfully  for  forty-two  years,  has  lost  a  pastor  whose 
kind  counsels,  whose  affectionate  sympathies,  whose  wise 
instructions,  and  whose  consistent  example  it  will  be 
hard  indeed  to  supply  from  any  other  source. 

The  manner  of  his  death,  while  it  was  sudden  and 
shocking  to  his  surviving  friends,  was  in  some  respects 
characterized  by  special  mercy.  "We  have  lost  the  les- 
sons of  his  dying  hours,  but  we  have  the  lessons  of  his 
consistent  and  useful  life.  He  was  kindly  spared  a  long 
and  painful  illness,  and  died  like  a  true  soldier  of  the 
Cross  with  his  armor  on.  The  last  day  of  his  life  was 
spent  in  pastoral  visitation  among  his  people.  Eeturn- 
ing  near  the  close  of  the  day,  he  stepped  out  upon  the 
piazza  in  the  rear  of  his  dwelling  to  open  a  glass  door, 
which,  opening  suddenly,  occasioned  his  fall  upon  the 
pavement  below.  The  fall  produced  a  fracture  of  the 
skull,  which  resulted  in  death  on  the  fourth  day  follow- 
ing. That  door  was  to  him  the  gate  of  heaven.  He 
passed  through  it  to  walk  in  paradise.  It  was  indeed  a 
sudden  death,  but  to  him  sudden  death  was  "  sudden 
glory."  It  seems  to  us  that  his  end  was  premature. 
But  the  words  of  the  poet  may  well  be  applied  to  him : 

"  Go  to  the  grave  in  all  thy  glorious  prime, 
Thy  full  activity  of  zeal  and  power  ; 
A  Christian  can  not  die  before  his  time ; 
The  Lord's  appointment  is  the  servant's  hour !" 

Those  of  us  whose  privilege  it  was  to  unite  in  paying 
the  last  offices  of  respect  and  burial  to  his  remains,  can 
need  no  better  evidence  of  the  estimation  in  which  Dr. 
Knox  was  held  by  the  Church  and  the  public  than  the 
extraordinary  demonstration  which  was  made  at  his 


83 

funeral.     A  more  imposing  and  affecting  sight  could 
scarcely  have  been  presented  than  was  presented  in  the 
church  where  the  public  services  of  the  solemn  occasion 
were  held.     It  was  not  the  sable  drapery  with  which 
the  large  edifice  was  appropriately  clothed,  nor  the  sol- 
emn dirges  which  the  wailing  organ  uttered,  nor  yet 
the  tremulous  tones  of  venerable  men  of  God  as  they 
spoke  and  prayed  above  the  coffin  of  their  departed 
V)rother  that  gave  character,  and  interest,  and  impress- 
iveness  to  the  scene.     It  was  the  gathering  of  thousands 
of  the  best  and  noblest  men  and  women  of  our  great 
metropolis,  who  came  to  testify  to  his  worth  and  pay 
their  homage  to  his  memory.    The  clergy  of  all  denom- 
inations were  there,  among  them  the  most  distinguished 
and  venerable  of  each  branch  of  the  Church,  sincere 
mourners  for  one  of  the  most  venerable  of  them  all ; 
one  whose  catholic  spirit  made  little  account  of  minor 
diversities  in  the  Christian   brotherhood,   but   whose 
warm  heart  hailed  in  every  Christian  minister  a  brother 
in  a  common  Lord.     The  noblest  and  best  men  of  the 
Church  were  there,  her  pastors,  her  rulers,  her  members, 
and  all  wept  for  a  father  and  a  brother.     His  bereaved 
colleagues  were  there,  long  connected  with  him  in  the 
most  intimate  and  delightful  association,  grieving,  most 
of  all,  that  they  should  see  his  face  no  more.     The 
strong  men,  and  the  wise  men,  and  the  learned  men, 
and  the  honorable  men  of  the  city  were  there,  affected 
by  a  common  sorrow,  over  a  common  loss.     This  was 
his  noblest  eulogy.     Those  silent,  sorrowing  thousands, 
silent  save  when  some  deep  sigh  or  audible  sob  broke 
from   some    overburdened   heart,  were   eloquent,  yea, 
more  eloquent  than  any  orator's  eulogium  or  poet's  song 
iu  their  testimony  to  his  worth.     No  pomp  or  pageant- 
ry such  as  waits  on  the  obsequies  of  the  world's  hero 
was  there.     No  trailing  banners,  no  nodding  plumes,  no 


84 

roll  of  muffled  drum,  no  cannon^s  roar  lent  their  facti- 
tious splendors  to  the  scene.  Not  his  the  showy  but 
heartless  rites  which  are  paid  at  the  conqueror's  grave. 
Devout  men  carried  him  to  his  burial,  and  made  great 
lamentation  over  him.  A  thousand  tearful  eyes,  a  thou- 
sand saddened  hearts  paid  honest  and  fitting  tribute  at 
a  good  man's  grave.  In  many  a  household  and  in  many 
a  heart  will  his  memory  be  sacred  as  the  memory  of 
the  just,  till  the  day  when  the  beloved  pastor  and  his 
redeemed  people  shall  together  enter  into  the  joy  of 
their  Lord. 

My  Christian  brethren,  while  as  a  denomination  we 
are  learning  in  sadness  that  all  flesh  is  grass,  and  all  the 
glory  of  man  as  the  flower  of  grass ;  let  us  remember 
that  though  the  grass  withereth,  and  the  flower  thereof 
falleth  away,  the  word  of  the  Lord  endureth  forever  ! 
Though  the  grave  must  close  over  all  that  is  fair,  and 
venerable,  and  useful,  and  good ;  though  the  valued, 
and  trusted,  and  loved  must  leave  us  in  their  appointed 
time,  let  us  not  forget  that  the  God  of  Zion  lives  ;  that 
the  Captain  of  our  salvation  survives,  and  that  we  can 
still  trust  in  the  Chief  Shepherd  and  Bishop  of  our 
souls.  It  is  indeed  sad  for  us,  short-sighted  and  depend- 
ent as  we  are,  to  see  our  strong  men  falling  like  the 
oaks  of  the  forest,  but  we  must  not  forget  that  the 
purposes  of  a  sovereign  God  shall  never  fail  of  their 
complete  accomplishment,  and  that  the  promise  of  the 
Saviour  to  the  Church  is,  that  the  gates  of  hell  shall  not 
prevail  against  her.  We  need  not  despair  of  the 
Church ;  God  will  take  care  of  Zion.  She  will  come 
up  out  of  the  Avilderness  leaning  on  the  arm  of  her  Be- 
loved. She  will  stand  forth  "  fair  as  the  moon,  clear  as 
the  sun,  and  terrible  as  an  army  with  banners."  Zion 
will  arise  and  shine,  her  light  being  come,  her  glory 
shall  go  forth  as  brightness,  and  her  salvation  as  a  lamp 


85 

that  burnetii.  Our  dying  Ludlow  said:  "There  are 
two  things  of  which  I  have  no  doubt.  The  safety  of 
my  country,  and  the  safety  of  my  soul."  So  there  is 
another  thing  of  which  no  Christian  can  doubt,  and 
that  is  the  safety  and  final  triumph  of  the  Church  of 
God.  "The  grass  withereth  and  the  flower  thereof 
falleth  away.  But  the  word  of  the  Lord  endureth  for- 
ever." 

But  there  is  a  voice  which  speaks  to  us  from  the 
grave  of  departed  goodness  with  a  higher  aim  than  to 
awaken  a  transient  emotion.  It  admonishes  us  to  be 
up  and  doing  in  our  own  work  for  the  Master  and  his 
cause.  It  tells  us  that  we  know  not  the  day  nor  the 
hour  when  the  Son  of  Man  cometh,  and  will  call  us  to 
give  an  account  of  our  stewardship.  It  admonishes  us 
that  the  best  way  to  meet  Him  in  peace  is  to  be  found 
of  Him,  when  He  cometh,  diligently  doing  our  duty. 
The  ministry  of  our  Church  are  especially  reminded  by 
these  repeated  dispensations  of  their  need  of  increased 
watchfulness,  zeal,  and  devotion.  May  God  impress 
the  lesson  deeply  in  their  hearts !  The  officers  and 
members,  too,  are  also  enjoined  to  renewed  activity  for 
the  honor  of  God  and  the  welfare  of  immortal  souls. 
Let  them  be  watchful  and  strengthen  the  things  which 
remain,  that  are  ready  to  perish.  Let  them  rally  as 
one  man  to  the  promotion  of  every  legitimate  interest 
of  the  Church.  Let  them  sustain  all  its  efforts  to  extend 
its  usefulness  in  our  country  and  the  world.  Let  them 
cooperate  with  and  encourage  the  ministry  in  their 
efforts  to  this  end,  remembering  that  every  thing  which 
they  keep  back  from  the  Lord,  of  sympathy,  of  prayer, 
of  contribution,  and  of  toil  will  only  detract  from  the 
splendor  of  their  crowns  of  rejoicing  in  the  day  of  the 
Lord. 

And  let  all  men  who  are  yet  in  their  sins,  and  unpre- 


86 

pared  to  meet  their  God,  beware  how  they  trifle  with 
what  is  so  momentous  and  uncertain  as  a  dying  man's 
life.  Had  not  our  departed  Knox  long  years  ago  given 
himself  to  the  Saviour,  and  lived  always  in  readiness  to 
meet  Him,  how  different  would  now  be  the  record  of  his 
life  and  death  !  He  had  no  opportunity  at  the  last  to 
do  this  great  work: 

While  yet  ye  live,  ye  dying  men, 
"  Prepare  to  meet  your  God !" 

"  Now  is  the  accepted  time.     Behold,  now  is  the  day 
of  salvation." 


RESOLUTIONS 


OP 


INSTITUTIONS,  RELIGIOUS,  BENEVOLENT,  AND  LITERARY. 


RESOLUTIONS. 


Record  of  the  American  Tract  Society  on  the  Death  of  the 
Rev.  John  Knox,  D.D. 

The  Executive  Committee  of  the  American  Tract  Society  on  the 
18th  January,  1858,  unanimously  adopted  the  following  record : 

The  Committee  would  bow  submissively  to  the  holy  will  of 
God  in  suddenly  calliug  to  himself  their  esteemed  and 
venerated  Chairman,  the  Eev.  John  Knox,  D.D.,  one  of  the 
Society's  founders,  who  has  consecrated  to  its  best  interests  his 
faithful  efficient  labors,  his  kind,  wise,  and  judicious  counsels, 
and  his  prayers,  throughout  the  whole  period  of  its  history. 
Having  acted  on  the  Executive  and  Publishing  Committees 
for  twenty  years,  on  the  death  of  theKev.  Dr.  Milnor  in  1845, 
he  was  appointed  Chairman  of  both  Committees,  which  posi- 
tion he  filled  with  distinguished  ability  and  acceptance  to  all, 
for  nearly  thirteen  years,  till  called  to  the  rest  above. 

Dr.  Knox  was  born,  of  pious  and  highly  respected  parents, 
near  Gettysburgh,  Pennsylvania,  June  17,  1790,  and  graduated 
at  Dickinson  College,  Carlisle,  in  1811.  He  pursued  the  study 
of  theology  in  the  Seminary  of  the  Associate  Keformed  Church, 
under  the  superintendence  of  the  Kev.  Dr.  John  M.  Mason, 
was  licensed  to  preach  the  Gospel  in  1815,  and  on  the  l-ith  of 
July,  1816,  at  the  age  of  twenty-six,  was  installed  pastor  of 
the  Collegiate  Keformed  Dutch  Church  in  the  city  of  :N"ew- 
York.  In  this  prominent  and  highly  responsible  station,  sus- 
tained by  the  warm  afi'ections  of  the  large  associate  congrega- 
tions, he  faithfully  and  successfully  fulfilled  the  duties  of  the 


90 

ministry,  "  publicly  and  from  house  to  house,"  to  an  endeared 
and  confiding  people,  for  nearly  forty-two  years.  Being  still 
in  the  vigor  of  health  and  with  every  promise  of  continued 
usefulness,  on  the  5th  inst.  he  fell  from  the  piazza  back  of  his 
parlor,  producing  a  concussion  of  the  brain,  which  instantly 
terminated  consciousness,  and  he  died  on  Friday  evening, 
January  8, 1858,  at  the  age  of  67,  surrounded  by  his  surviving 
six  sons  and  three  daughters.  The  estimable  wife  of  his  youth, 
eldest  daughter  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Mason,  to  whom  he  was 
married  May  11,  1818,  died  two  years  before  him,  July  6, 
1855. 

His  position  and  growing  influence  through  this  long  period 
of  years  brought  him  into  many  responsible  and  endeared  re- 
lations. At  the  time  of  his  death,  he  was  President  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  Columbia  College,  of  the  Leake  and 
Watts  Orphan  Asylum,  which  had  his  constant  care,  and  of 
the  Board  of  Education  and  the  Sunday-School  Union  of  the 
Reformed  Dutch  Church.  He  was  a  Director  of  the  Board  of 
Corporation  of  that  Church ;  a  Trustee  of  Rutgers  College, 
]^ew-Brunswick,  and  of  the  New- York  College  of  Physicians 
and  Surgeons;  and  was  connected  with  numerous  other 
religious  and  benevolent  institutions,  who  expected  and 
received  his  wise  counsels  and  cordial  cooperation.  It  was  the 
mournful  privilege  of  this  Committee,  on  Tuesday  last,  to 
unite  with  representatives  from  these  various  institutions, 
and  thousands  from  our  evangelical  churches  of  every  name, 
in  the  highly  appropriate  and  impressive  funeral  solemnities. 

To  the  Rev.  Dr.  Knox  the  American  Tract  Society  owe  a 
debt  of  lasting  gratitude.  Not  only  did  he  examine  the 
numerous  invaluable  publications  that  have  been  sanctioned 
and  issued  since  its  formation,  but  the  records  show  that  of  the 
562  meetings  of  the  Publishing  Committee  which  have  been 
held,  he  attended/b?^r  hundred  and  sixty-three^  though  he  was 
absent  some  months  on  a  visit  for  health  to  the  West-Indies, 
and  afterwards  on  a  visit  to  Europe,  when  he  represented  the 


91 

Society  as  a  delegate  to  the  annivei'sary  of  the  Eeligioiis  Tract 
Society  in  London.  He  also  attended  19-4  out  of  477  meetings 
of  the  Executive  Committee,  though  often  detained  by 
parochial  or  other  official  engagements. 

The  motives  that  impelled  him  to  these  labors  were  the  same 
that  gave  character  to  his  life,  and  controlled  his  efforts, 
whether  public  or  private,  in  the  pulpit  or  through  the  press. 
He  loved  and  cherished,  and  every  where  firmly  and  calmly 
vindicated  the  great  essential  doctrines  of  the  cross  as  God's 
appointed  means  for  the  salvation  of  men.  "  Bought  with  a 
price,"  and  ''not  his  own,"  he  felt  bound  to  consecrate  his 
energies  to  make  known  these  "glad  tidings."  This  object  he 
pursued  with  a  business  talent,  promptness,  and  energy  that 
few  possess  ;  with  frankness,  honesty,  and  unbending  integrity  ; 
with  sound  judgment  and  an  almost  innate  discretion  and  sense 
of  propriety ;  with  distinguished  urbanity,  kindness,  and 
courtesy,  and  with  sympathy  for  the  suffering  and  the  orphan, 
which  at  once  opened  the  way  of  access,  and  won  the  confi- 
dence of  all  who  knew  him.  He  loved  the  Society  as  an 
effective  agency  for  securing  the  great  object  of  his  life  ;  as 
issuing  the  true  Gospel,  and  bearing  it,  under  the  blessing  of 
the  Spirit,  to  millions  of  the  wandering  and  the  lost.  He  loved 
it  too  as  uniting  the  friends  of  evangelical  truth  of  every  name 
and  locality,  and  loved  to  be  among  them,  as  was  affectingly 
indicated  when  distinguished  ministerial  brethren  from  six 
ecclesiastical  communions  united  in  bearing  his  body  to  the 
tomb.  The  members  of  the  Committee,  thanking  God  for  all 
that  he  was,  and  all  that  he  did  while  with  them,  rejoice  that, 
having  "  finished  his  course,"  and  "  kept  the  faith,"  he  now 
sees  the  Saviour  as  He  is,  and  mingles  with  "  the  general  as- 
sembly and  church  of  the  first-born"  in  His  eternal  praise. 

They  can  not  refrain  from  adding,  as  strictly  appropriate  to 
the  present  occasion,  the  choice  words  written  by  Dr.  Knox 
himself  on  the  death  of  his  associate  on  the  Publishing  Com- 
mittee, Dr.  Milnor,  whose  labors  and  responsibilities  their  in- 


92 

timate  and  cordial  relations   enabled   him  so  justly  to  ap- 
preciate : 

"  While  the  whole  community,  in  whose  heart  he  is  em- 
balmed, has  reason  to  mourn  the  removal  of  one  of  its  most 
useful  members  and  brightest  ornaments,  a  man  of  God,  as- 
sociated with  every  benevolent  and  good  work,  the  American 
Tract  Society  is  called  by  this  dispensation  of  divine  Providence 
to  lament  the  loss  of  services  extending  through  its  entire  ex- 
istence, and  which,  under  God,  have  eminently  contributed  to 
its  success  and  usefulness.  With  the  whole  history  of  the 
Society  he  is  identified :  at  all  times,  notwithstanding  his  many 
avocations,  bestowing  upon  the  interests  of  the  institution  an 
unwearied,  a  prompt  and  zealous  attention.  In  connection 
with  the  Publishing  Committee  especially,  his  labors  have 
been  incessant  and  indefatigable  ;  and  his  wisdom,  piety,  self- 
denying  industry,  enlarged  and  catholic  spirit,  and  uniformly 
kind  and  courteous  bearing,  have  left  impressions  of  respect 
and  love  on  the  hearts  of  his  colleagues,  deep,  enduring,  and  in- 
effaceable. His  exemplary  piety,  purity  of  life,  benevolence, 
charity,  and  usefulness,  had  invested  him  with  a  wide-spread 
and  constantly  growing  infiuence  and  weight  of  character 
which  it  is  the  lot  of  very  few  ever  to  attain.  His  praise  is  in 
all  the  churches ;  and  perhaps  no  other  man  at  the  present 
time  could  have  been  taken  from  us  more  universally  and 
deeply  lamented." 

Minute  of  the  Executive  Committee  of  the  Board  of  Domestic 

Missions  of  the  Keformed  Protestant  Dutch  Church, 

March,  1858. 

"  It  having  pleased  God  in  his  all-wise  providence  to  remove 
by  death  the  venerable  Vice-President  of  the  Board  of  Do- 
mestic Missions,  John  Knox,  D.D.,  this  Committee  would 
record  their  high  estimation  of  the  personal  worth  of  their 
deceased  brother — of  his  eminently  conservative  character — of 
his  long  ministerial  usefulness — of  his  exemplary  devotion  to 


93 

the  duties  of  his  office,  as  well  as  faithfully  meeting  the  re- 
sponsibilities of  his  relations  to  various  literary  and  benevo- 
lent institutions ;  and  they  unite  with  the  whole  Church  in  sym- 
pathy with  his  bereaved  family  circle,  his  colleagues  in  the 
pastoral  office  and  the  particular  church  of  which  he  was  the 
senior  pastor,  and  pray  that  this  bereavement  may  be  sanctified 
to  all." 

Eesolulions  of  the  General  Synod's  Sabbath-School  Board. 

At  a  special  meeting  of  this  Board,  held  the  11th  inst.,  the 
death  of  the  Eev.  John  Knox,  D.D.,  having  been  announced 
by  the  Yice-President,  James  Anderson,  M.D.,  it  was  unani- 
inously 

Resolved^  Tliat  the  Yice-President  and  the  Eev.  Thomas  C. 
Strong  be  a  Committee  to  prepare  an  appropriate  minute,  ex- 
pressive of  the  sense  of  this  Board  of  this  afflictive  visitation, 
and  of  the  high  regard  entertained  for  his  eminent  character 
and  services. 

Resolved^  That  this  Board  will  attend  the  funeral  of  Dr. 
Knox,  to-morrow,  from  his  late  residence. 

At  an  adjourned  meeting,  held  on  the  18th  inst.,  the  Com- 
mittee appointed  to  prepare  a  suitable  minute  in  regard  to  the 
sudden  and  afflictive  decease  of  our  late  honored  and  devoted 
President,  Kev.  John  Knox,  D.D.,  reported  the  following  : 

Whereas^  it  has  pleased  God  in  his  inscrutable  sovereignty 
to  remove  from  the  scenes  and  duties  of  this  present  life,  the 
Eev.  John  Knox,  D.D.,  for  many  years  the  revered  President 
of  this  Board,  giving  encouragement  by  his  presence,  and  wis- 
dom by  his  counsels  ;  therefore, 

llesolved^  That  this  Board  will  bow  with  resignation  to  this 
dark  dispensation  of  our  Heavenly  Father,  and  while  we 
mourn  our  loss,  we  would  pray  that  this  visitation  may  be 
sanctified  to  the  arousing  of  Christian  effort,  and  the  more 
vigorous  prosecution  of  that  work  which  is  intrusted  to  us,  and 
which  lay  so  near  the  heart  of  our  late  esteemed  President. 


94 

Resolved^  That  this  Board  will  ever  love  to  cherish  with 
grateful  and  pleasant  remembrance,  those  Christian  virtues 
which  graced  the  character  of  our  father  and  brother  as  a  man, 
and  gave  impressive  power  and  unwonted  influence  to  all  his 
labors  as  a  faithful  and  conscientions  minister  of  the  Gospel, 
his  candor  and  integrity  in  all  business  relations,  his  urbanity 
and  gentleness  in  private  life,  his  singularly  guileless  dis- 
position which  ever  influenced  his  every  word  and  act,  his 
consistent,  ardent,  and  impressive  piety,  his  fidelity  to  the  in- 
terests of  every  institution  with  which  he  was  connected,  his 
earnest  and  faithful  ministration  through  a  period  of  forty-two 
years,  his  warm-hearted  sympathy  and  efi'ective  liberality  for 
the  poor,  the  widow,  and  the  orphan,  and  to  crown  all, 
his  constant  aim  to  promote  the  glory  of  God,  both  by  word 
and  deed. 

Resolved^  That  in  his  decease,  this  Board  has  lost  a  tried 
friend,  an  unwearied  supporter,  a  wise  counsellor,  and  an 
efficient  ofiicer,  whose  prayers  and  eflTorts  were  always  com- 
bined to  promote  the  growth,  and  develop  the  energies  and 
usefulness  of  this  institution. 

Resolved^  That  as  a  tribute  of  respect  and  afi'ection,  at  the 
next  Anniversary  of  the  Sabbath-schools  connected  with  the 
Board,  all  the  banners  be  draped  with  crape. 

Resolved^  That  a  copy  of  these  Resolutions  be  transmitted 
to  the  family  of  Rev.  Dr.  Knox,  and  also  published  in  the 
Christian  Intelligencer  and  Soioer. 

Bauman  Lowe,  Sec.  pro  tern. 

Record  of  the  Proceedings  of  the  Board  of  Education  of  the 
Reformed  Dutch  Church. 

Immediately  after  the  opening  of  the  meeting  of  this  Board 
on  Monday  last,  the  decease  of  the  Rev.  John  Knox,  D.D., 
who  was  the  President,  and  a  member  of  the  Executive  Com- 
mittee, of  the  Board,  was  announced  by  Rev.  B.  C.  Taylor, 


95 

D.D.,  accompanied  by  some   appropriate   and  affecting  re- 
marks, when  it  was 

Resolved^  That  a  Committee  be  appointed,  consisting  of 
Eev.  Drs.  Hutton  (Yice-President)  and  Taylor,  to  draft  a  min- 
ute expressive  of  the  sense  of  this  Board  in  regard  to  this 
afflictive  event,  to  report  at  the  next  meeting. 

Whereupon  the  Board  at  once  adjourned,  to  meet  at  the 
late  residence  of  its  esteemed  President,  to  attend  his  funeral, 
on  Tuesday,  at  half-past  two  o'clock  P.M. 

The  Committee  appointed  to  prepare  a  minute  expressive  of 
the  sense  of  the  Board  in  reference  to  the  death  of  Pev. 
John  Knox,  D.D.,  presented  the  following  report,  which  was 
accepted,  and  ordered  on  record : 

Besolced^  That  while  the  Board  of  Education  recognize  the 
good  hand  of  our  God  in  this  dispensation  of  his  ever- wise 
and  kind  providence,  and  therefore  bow  in  submission,  yet  that 
they  receive  with  the  deepest  sorrow  and  regret  the  announce- 
ment of  the  death  of  their  highly  esteemed  associate,  friend, 
and  President,  the  Rev.  John  Knox,  D.D. 

Resolved^  That  in  the  death  of  Dr.  Knox,  the  Board  deplore 
the  loss  of  a  truly  good  and  inestimable  man,  and  minister  of 
the  Gospel  of  Christ ;  a  devoted  and  sincere  friend,  and  an 
able  and  wise  counsellor ;  w^hose  enlightened  and  undoubted 
piety,  generous  and  kind  heart,  and  high  moral  excellence, 
can  hardly  be  over-estimated. 

The  Board  would  gratefully  record  their  testimony,  that  for 
self-sacrificing  and  never-tiring  devotion  to  his  official  duties, 
for  wisdom  in  counsel,  for  kindly  disposition,  unaffected  piety, 
and  real  worth,  they  feel  that  he  has  not  only  left  behind  no 
superior,  but  that  there  is  no  one  who  can  completely  fill  the 
void  which  his  death  has  made,  both  in  the  Church  and  in  the 
city,  and  that  it  may  be  truly  said  of  him,  as  of  one  of  old, 
that  having  served  his  generation^  he  fell  asleep. 

Resolved^  That  a  copy  of  this  minute  be  sent  to  his  be- 


reaved  family,  aiid  that  it  also  be  published  in  The  Christian 
Intelligencer  and  The  Sower  and  Missionary  Recorder. 

M.  S.  HuTTON  I  Committee. 

Benjamin  C.  Iaylok,  j 

Tribute  of  Affection  to  the  Memory  of  the  late  Dr.  Knox,  by 

the  Young  Men's  Association  of  the  Middle 

Dutch  Church. 

At  a  special  meeting  of  the  Young  Men's  Association  of 
the  Middle  (Collegiate)  Dutch  Church,  held  on  Monday  even- 
ing, the  11th  inst.,  the  following  minute  was  adopted  : 

Our  senior  and  much-beloved  pastor,  the  Rev.  John  Knox, 
D.D.,  having  been  suddenly  removed  from  us  by  death,  this 
Association,  in  which  he  took  such  a  warm  and  earnest  inter- 
est, records  with  deep  sensibility  the  sad  event. 

The  eminently  useful  and  blameless  life  which  character- 
ized the  deceased — the  love  and  devotion  he  manifested  in. the 
discharge  of  his  pastoral  duties — the  attachment  he  showed  to 
the  young  of  his  flock,  and  his  untiring  efforts  to  impress 
upon  their  minds  the  truths  of  the  religion  to  which  his  life 
was  devoted,  will  be  affectionately  and  gratefully  remembered 
by  us. 

In  testifying  this  tribute  of  gratitude  for  his  faithful  life, 
and  of  affectionate  veneration  for  his  memory,  we  are  im- 
pressed by  the  words  of  our  Saviour,  which  were  so  often 
borne  home  to  our  hearts  by  the  voice  of  our  beloved  pastor, 
while  living,  and  which  now  appeal  to  us  so  solemnly  in  his 
death  ;  "  Be  ye  also  ready  ;  for  at  an  hour  when  ye  think  not, 
the  Son  of  Man  cometh." 

Resolved.)  That  the  foregoing  minute  be  published  in  The 
Christian  Intelligencer. 

H.  M.  Brush,  Sec'y.  A.  A.  RAYEIsr,  Pres't 


97 


Tribute  of  the  Young  Men's  Association  of  the  Beformed 
Dutch  Church,  cor.  of  Fifth  Avenue  and  Twenty-ninth  St. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Young  Men's  Association  of  the  Ee- 
formed  Dutch  Church,  corner  of  Fifth  Avenue  and  Twenty- 
ninth  street,  held  on  Wednesday  evening,  the  13th  inst.,  the 
following  preamble  and  resolution  were  offered  by  Mr.  Abm. 
Bogardus : 

Whereas^  It  has  pleased  God  to  remove  from  us  our  beloved 
pastor,  the  Eev.  John  Knox,  therefore 

Resolved^  That  a  committee  be  appointed  to  prepare  resolu- 
tions expressive  of  the  sense  of  this  Association  in  regard  to 
the  solemn  dispensation  of  Providence,  and  of  the  affection- 
ate respect  they  entertain  for  the  memory  of  one  so  long 
spared  as  a  preacher  of  righteousness,  and  the  counsellor  and 
instructor  of  youth. 

Messrs.  Abm.  Bogardus,  Mortimer  De  Motte,  and  T.  Edward 
Yermilye  were  appointed  a  committee,  and  presented  the  fol- 
lowing resolutions : 

Resolved^  That  this  Association,  in  common  with  the  Church 
at  large  and  the  whole  community,  mourn  the  loss  of  our  be- 
loved friend  and  senior  pastor,  the  Eev.  Dr.  Knox,  an  honor- 
ary member  of  this  Association. 

His  most  upright  and  consistent  character  as  a  man  and  a 
Christian,  his  eminent  devotion  and  godly  sincerity  as  a  min- 
ister, and  his  life  of  varied  and  active  usefulness,  have  filled 
us  with  affectionate  veneration. 

We  have  felt  towards  him  as  tow^ards  a  father.  We  deplore 
liis  departure  as  that  of  a  pastor  and  friend,  in  whose  sincerity 
of  purpose,  kindness  of  feeling,  and  wisdom  in  council,  we 
could  always  confide. 

May  we  have  grace  to  profit  by  his  salutary  instructions 
and  his  pure  example. 

Resolved^  That  we  present  to  the  family  of  our  departed 
7 


98 

pastor  and  friend,  the  expression  of  our  sincere  sympathy  in 
their  bereavement,  and  our  prayers  that  the  God  of  their 
father  may  be  their  God  also. 

Resolved^  That  these  resolutions  be  placed  on  the  minutes 
of  the  Association,  and  that  a  certified  copy  be  transmitted  to 
the  family,  and  that  a  copy  be  sent  to  The  Christian  Intelli- 
gencer for  publication. 

Edward  C.  Delay  an,  PresH. 

EicHAED  Amerman,  Sec'y, 
JSTew-York,  Jan.  19,  1858. 


Besolutions  of  the  Leake  and  Watts'  Orphan  House. 

At  a  special  meeting  of  the  Leake  and  Watts'  Orphan 
House  in  the  city  of  New- York,  held  at  the  Mayor's  Office, 
on  the  13th  of  January,  1858,  it  was  unanimously 

Resolved^  That  the  Trustees  have  received  with  unfeigned 
sorrow  the  announcement  of  the  death  of  their  President, 
Rev.  John  Knox,  D.D. ; 

That  this  Institution,  by  such  decease,  has  lost  a  member  of 
remarkable  efficiency,  the  labors  of  whose  diligent  hands,  the 
sympathies  of  whose  warm  heart,  the  sound  operations  ol 
whose  well-balanced  mind,  were  ever  devoted  to  the  best  in- 
terests of  the  orphan  ; 

That  the  refined  deportment,  the  dignified  manners,  the 
high-toned  urbanity  of  the  gentleman,  and  the  fervent  piety  of 
the  Christian,  which  on  all  occasions  were  so  eminently  con- 
spicuous in  his  intercourse  with  others  in  our  numerous  bene- 
ficent and  literary  institutions,  and  with  the  community  at 
large,  have  won  for  his  memory  a  deep  and  abiding  home  in 
our  hearts ; 

That  a  copy  of  these  resolutions  be  forwarded  to  the  family 
of  our  deceased  associate,  with  the  tender  of  our  sincere  con- 
dolence on  this  afflicting  bereavement. 

F.  De  Peyster,  Clerh. 


99 


Record  of  the  Trustees  of  Columbia  College. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Trustees  of  Columbia  College,  held  on 
Monday,  the  1st  of  February,  1858,  the  following  recital  and 
resolutions  were  offered  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Berrian,  duly  second- 
ed, and  passed : 

Since  the  last  stated  meeting  of  this  body,  an  event  has  oc- 
curred, in  the  wise  and  mysterious  providence  of  God,  which 
has  wrung  the  hearts  of  many  with  anguish,  and  filled  the 
community  at  large  with  sorrow. 

The  late  venerable  Chairman  of  this  Board,  the  Eev.  Dr. 
Knox,  whom  to  know  was  to  love,  and  the  more  he  was 
known  to  love  him  the  better,  has  been  suddenly  taken  from 
us,  in  the  fullness  of  health,  and  the  ripeness  of  his  faculties, 
unbroken  by  age,  with  "  eye  not  dim,  nor  natural  force 
abated,"  and  left  us  to  wonder  and  regret  that  so  useful  a  life, 
though  far  advanced,  had  not  been  still  farther  prolonged. 

But  to  this  we  must  all  bow  in  humble  submission.  It  is 
our  duty  to  perpetuate  the  remembrance  of  him,  not  only  as 
personal  friends,  but  more  especially  on  account  of  the  rela- 
tions we  publicly  bore  to  him. 

Be  it  therefore 

Resolved^  That  in  view  of  his  punctual  attendance  as  a 
Trustee  at  the  meetings  of  this  Board  ;  the  interest  which  he 
took  in  all  its  proceedings ;  the  practical  wisdom  and  sound 
good  sense  with  which  he  came  to  his  own  conclusions  ;  and 
the  prudence,  discretion,  and  kind  feeling  which  he  invariably 
manifested  in  his  conferences  with  the  Committees  of  this 
body,  and  with  its  several  members  individually,  he  has  been 
eminently  useful  to  this  Institution,  and  is  entitled  to  the 
grateful  remembrance  of  all  who  are  connected  with  it. 

Resolved^  That  by  his  careful  attention  to  the  matters  which 
were  brought  before  him  as  the  Chairman  of  this  Board  ;  by 
his  fairness,  impartiality,  and  coolness,  even  amidst  differences 


100 

of  opinion,  and  in  the  lieat  of  debate ;  and  bv  his  uniform 
courtesy,  amenity,  and  kindness,  he  heightened  the  respect 
and  regard  in  this  new  position,  which  had  been  entertained 
for  him  as  a  Trustee,  and  presented  an  example  which  was 
worthy  of  future  imitation. 

Besolved^  That  the  Board  of  Trustees  feel  the  deepest  sym- 
pathy with  the  family  of  Dr.  Knox  ;  and  that  a  copy  of  these 
resolutions  be  sent  to  it,  as  an  expression  of  their  high  estima- 
tion of  his  public  labors  and  his  personal  worth. 

Extract  from  the  Minutes. 

"William  Beits,  Clerk, 

Besolutions  of  the  Trustees  of  the  College  of  Physicians  and 

Surgeons. 

At  a  special  meeting  of  the  Trustees  of  the  College  of  Phy- 
sicians and  Surgeons  in  the  City  of  N^ew-York,  held  on  Mon- 
day evening,  Jan.  11,  1858,  the  following  resolutions  were 
unanimously  adopted  : 

Resolved^  That  the  Trustees  have  heard  with  deep  sorrow  of 
the  decease  of  their  late  associate,  Rev.  John  Ivnox,  D.D. 

Besolved^  That  this  College,  in  common  with  other  institu- 
tions of  learning  and  benevolence  of  our  city,  has  sustained  a 
severe  loss  by  the  removal  of  one  whose  sound  judgment  and 
mature  experience  always  gave  weight  to  his  counsels. 

Resolved^  That  the  unaffected  piety  and  amiable  manners 
which  were  so  uniformly  displayed  in  the  character  of  the 
deceased,  will  always  endear  his  memory  to  our  recollection. 

Resolved^  That  the  Registrar  communicate  these  resolutions 
to  the  bereaved  family,  with  the  assurance  of  our  heartfelt 
sympathy  in  their  affliction. 

GuRDON  Buck,  M.D.,  Registrar. 


EXTKACTS    FROM    PAPERS 


From    TJie  Independent 
THE    LESSON    OP    SUDDEN    DEATH. 

Seldom  have  the  religions  commnnity  of  !N^ew-York  been  so 
profoundly  affected  by  any  local  event  as  by  the  sudden  death 
of  Rev.  John  Knox,  D.D.,  the  senior  pastor  of  the  Collegiate 
Eeformed  Dutch  Church  in  this  city.  The  long  and  faithful 
ministry  of  Dr.  Knox  had  endeared  him  to  a  wide  circle  of 
Christians  in  all  denominations ;  his  co-pastorate  over  the  se- 
veral Collegiate  churches,  and  his  position  at  the  head  of  the 
Executive  Committee  of  the  American  Tract  Society,  and  in 
various  benevolent  institutions,  had  made  his  name,  his  per- 
son, and  his  services  familiar  to  the  whole  Christian  com- 
munity ;  his  benignant  countenance  and  courteous  mien  had 
won  for  him  the  affectionate  regard  of  neighbors,  of  the  young, 
and  even  of  strangers  ;  while  his  readiness  for  ever}^  work  that 
commended  itself  to  his  judgment  as  wise  and  good  in  its  re- 
lations to  the  kingdom  of  Christ,  his  steadfast  faith  and  zeal 
with  regard  to  that  kingdom,  his  abundant  labors,  and  his 
catholic  spirit,  made  him  a  conspicuous  example  to  the  minis- 
ters of  the  Gospel  in  their  high  and  holy  calling.  The  man- 
ner of  his  death,  by  fixing  the  attention  of  the  whole  com- 
munity upon  the  event,  has  greatly  aggravated  the  sense  of 
public  loss. 

Dr.  Knox  was  ordained  and  installed  pastor  over  the  Col- 
legiate Church,  in  the  Middle  Church  on  E'assau  street,  (now 
the  Post-Office,)  in  July,  1816.  He  was  then  about  25  years 
of  age,  and  he  has  continued  in  the  ministry  over  the  same 
church,  though  officiating  in  different  edifices,  until  his  death 
at  the  age  of  67.  With  the  exception  of  Drs.  Spring  and 
Berrian,  Dr.  Knox  had  been  in  the  pastoral  office  in  this  city 


102 

for  a  longer  period  than  any  other  minister  ;  and  in  his  case, 
as  in  those  of  the  venerable  pastor  of  the  Brick  Church  and 
the  senior  rector  of  Trinity  parish,  the  first  settlement  proved 
to  be  a  settlement  for  life. 

At  the  time  of  Dr.  Knox's  settlement,  the  Collegiate  Church 
held  the  houses  of  worship  known  as  the  Middle  (now  the 
Post-Otfice)  and  the  North.,  on  the  corner  of  Fulton  and  Wil- 
liam streets — one  of  the  few  church  edifices  now  remaining 
far  down  town.  The  old  church  in  Garden  street,  which  for 
many  years  represented  the  original  corporate  Eeformed  Dutch 
Church  in  New-York,  in  1813  was  organized  into  a  distinct 
church  and  congregation,  leaving  the  Middle  and  North 
churches  under  the  original  incorporation  with  one  Consistory. 
Among  the  predecessors  of  Dr.  Knox  in  the  pastorate  over 
these  churches  were  Rev.  John  H.  Livingston,  D.D.,  John  N. 
Abeel,  D.D.,  Jacob  Brodhead,  D.D.,  and  Philip  Milledoler, 
D.D.  With  the  latter  Dr.  Knox  was  associated  as  colleague 
for  nine  years.  Dr.  Knox  was  a  pupil  in  theology  of  the  late 
Dr.  John  M.  Mason,  who  at  that  time  superintended  the  Asso- 
ciate Eeformed  Theological  Seminary  in  this  city.  Thus  he 
was  a  link  between  the  ministry  of  the  present  generation  and 
the  honored  and  revered  names  of  the  past.  Both  as  a  preacher 
and  a  pastor  Dr.  Knox  fulfilled  his  ofiice  with  great  acceptance 
to  the  large  congregations  of  the  Collegiate  churches.  Sound 
in  theology,  lucid  in  the  exposition  of  divine  truth,  affectionate 
in  manner,  and  devout  and  earnest  in  spirit,  he  was  welcome 
alike  in  the  pulpit  and  in  the  houses  of  his  hearers.  When 
the  old  Middle  Church  was  vacated  in  1814,  he  took  the  more 
immediate  charge  of  the  congregation  in  Lafayette  Place, 
where  the  Consistory  had  erected  a  new  house  of  worship  in 
1839.  The  name  Middle  Church  was  transferred  to  this ;  it 
stands  about  midway  between  the  North  in  Fulton  street  and 
the  new  house  on  Twenty-ninth  street  and  the  Fiftli  avenue  ; 
and  the  three  now  comprise  the  Collegiate  Church.  Dr.  Knox 
was  by  ten  years  the  senior  in  office  of  Drs.  W.  C.  Brownlee 
and  Thomas  De  Witt,  who  became  his  colleagues  in  1826-7. 
Dr.  Thomas  E.  Yermilye  was  added  to  the  corps  of  Collegiate 
pastors  in  1839,  and  Dr.  T.  W.  Chambers  in  1819.  His  posi- 
tion of  seniority,  however,  never  restrained  in  the  least  his 
natural  freedom  of  intercourse  with  his  juniors  in  the  ministry, 


103 

whether  in  his  own  or  in  other  denominations.  His  modes  of 
thought  and  action,  indeed,  were  rather  of  the  "  Old  School ;" 
and  he  may  have  looked  with  suspicion  upon  the  zeal  of 
younger  men  for  reforms  demanded  by  the  present  times. 
Hence  as  chairman  of  the  Executive  Committee  of  the  Tract 
Society,  he,  for  a  time,  withstood  the  movement  among  the 
members  of  the  Society  for  a  change  in  the  policy  of  its  ad- 
ministration upon  the  subject  of  slavery.  Accustomed  to 
move  in  the  interior  circle  of  the  Society's  affairs,  he  did  not 
fully  realize  the  external  position  of  the  Society  as  it  appeared 
to  many  in  the  new  questions  which  have  arisen  in  connection 
with  our  great  national  sin.  Yet  in  the  exciting  discussions 
connected  with  that  question,  we  believe  him  to  have  been  as 
sincere  in  his  own  convictions  of  right  and  duty  as  he  was 
courteous  and  affable  toward  those  who  as  honestly  opposed 
his  policy.  It  is  a  pleasing  reflection  that  these  discussions, 
so  far  as  we  are  aware,  never  led  to  a  personal  alienation  be- 
tween Dr.  Knox  and  those  of  his  Christian  brethren  who  most 
decidedly  opposed  the  course  of  the  Tract  Administration  on 
the  slavery  question. 

On  Tuesday  morning  of  last  week  we  met  Dr.  Knox  in  front 
of  his  own  dwelling,  and  received  his  usual  courteous  saluta- 
tion. He  was  then  in  full  health ;  indeed,  age  did  not  seem 
to  have  at  all  impaired  the  freshness  of  his  countenance  or  the 
vigor  of  his  frame.  That  same  evening  we  learned  that  he  was 
lying  at  the  point  of  death.  In  the  act  of  opening  the  blinds 
of  the  piazza  in  the  rear  of  his  parlor  he  lost  his  balance,  and 
falling  upon  the  stone  pavement,  a  distance  of  several  feet 
below,  fractured  his  skull,  and  sustained  other  injuries  which 
from  the  first  made  his  case  hopeless.  He  lingered  in  a  state 
of  unconsciousness  until  Friday  evening,  when  he  expired  at 
8  o'clock.  His  funeral  was  attended  on  Tuesday,  the  12th  iust., 
at  the  church  on  Lafayette  place,  by  a  great  concourse  of  citi- 
zens, including  the  ministers  of  all  denominations,  who  assem- 
bled in  large  numbers  to  testify  their  respect  and  grief 

How  impressive  is  the  lesson  of  this  event  as  to  the  import- 
ance of  being  momently  prepared  for  death !  AVe  know 
that  Death  is  ever  nigh ;  that  he  may  come  suddenly  ;  that 
nothing  is  more  uncertain  than  the  time  and  the  manner  of  his 


104 

coming.  But  do  we  not  cherish  a  secret  expectation  that  we 
shall  have  time  to  make  special  preparation  for  death  ?  that  a 
prolonged  sickness  or  other  timely  warning  will  enable  us  to 
set  our  house  in  order  ?  Do  w^e  realize  that  Death  may  come 
to  any  one  of  us  without  warning  of  any  kind,  and  that  at  any 
instant  we  may  pass  directly  from  the  visible  into  the  invisi- 
ble? How  momentous  the  thought  that  without  one  moment's 
opportunity  to  review  our  lives  under  the  near  shadow  of 
eternity  we  may  be  called  to  stand  before  God  !  Be  ye  also 
ready ^  for  in  such  an  hour  as  ye  ihinh  not  the  Son  of  Man 
comeih. 

How  valuable  is  the  testimony  of  a  good  life — a  life  so  clear, 
so  decided,  so  uniform  in  its  devotedness  to  God  that  it  needs 
no  confirmation  of  dying  words  to  give  surviving  friends  the 
fullest  assurance  of  one's  good  estate.  Few  within  the  circle 
of  our  acquaintance  could  so  well  dispense  with  the  record  of 
a  dying  testimony  as  could  that  venerable  servant  of  Christ  to 
whom  death  came  without  premonition — who  passed,  as  it 
were,  by  a  single  step,  from  the  porch  of  his  earthly  home  to 
the  mansion  prepared  for  him  in  our  Father's  house.  His  long 
life  of  usefulness,  his  serene  and  cheerful  piety,  bear  witness 
that  while  his  mind  was  clouded  toward  earth  it  was  luminous 
toward  heaven.  Let  it  be  our  endeavor  so  to  live  that  no 
question  of  our  blessed  immortality  shall  arise  at  death,  though 
we  should  then  be  able  neither  by  word,  nor  look,  nor  sign,  to 
testify  to  others  the  peace  and  joy  of  the  inner  man.  Espe- 
cially does  the  suddenness  of  death  in  the  case  now  before  us, 
closing  a  life  of  unquestioned  piety,  call  upon  ministers  to 
make  Him  whom  they  preach  first  and  central  in  their  own 
daily  thought  and  life. 

Amid  all  the  solemnity  and  mystery  in  which  the  close  of 
this  good  man's  life  is  shrouded,  how  striking  the  suggestion 
of  the  immortality  of  that  life,  which  comes  to  us  in  the  very 
suddenness  of  its  earthly  end !  Was  the  soul  wounded  in  that 
fall  ?  Did  he  who  had  thought  and  loved  and  prayed  and  la- 
bored for  the  good  of  man  and  the  glory  of  Christ,  cease  to  he 
when  the  smitten  brain  ceased  to  manifest  a  consciousness  of 
outward  things  ?  No  man  believes  this  ;  no  man  can  believe 
this,  or  doubt  that  powers  unwasted  by  disease,  resumed  their 
activity  in  another  sphere.    Could  surgical  skill  have  removed 


105 

the  pressure  from  the  brain,  the  mind  that  seemed  unconscious 
might  have  awoke  as  from  a  sleep.  What  then  must  be  that 
awaking,  when  the  soul  itself,  freed  from  all  material  pressure 
and  ^constraint,  not  dismantled  but  disenthralled,  enters  the 
glory  of  the  Infinite  and  Eternal  ?  May  God  fit  us  for  that 
transition,  through  Him  who  died  and  rose  again  ! 


From  the  Sower, 
THE    LATE    DK.    KNOX. 

We  need  not  ask  the  readers  of  the  The  Sower^  in  the  words 
of  David,  respecting  Abner,  Know  ye  not  that  there  is  a  prince 
and  a  great  man  fallen  in  Israel  ?  The  unwelcome  tidings 
has  spread  from  mouth  to  mouth,  has  been  seized  by  the  daily 
press,  has  sped  on  the  wings  of  the  telegraph,  until  long  be- 
fore this  sheet  falls  into  the  hands  of  the  reader,  all  true  friends 
of  our  Church  will  have  felt  the  great  loss  wdiich  our  branch 
of  Zion  has  been  called  to  mourn. 

Dr.  Knox,  next  to  Dr.  Spring,  was  the  oldest  settled  pastor 
in  this  city.  It  is  believed  that  the  settlement  of  Dr.  Berrian, 
of  Trinity  Church,  and  of  Dr.  Knox,  was  nearly  at  the  same 
time.  lie  was  born  June  17,  1790,  near  Gettysburgh,  in 
Adams  county,  Pennsylvania,  of  pious  parents,  of  the  highest 
respectability.  He  pursued  his  literary  course,  and  was  gra- 
duated at  Dickinson  College,  Carlisle,  Pennsylvania,  in  1811. 
He  then  entered  the  Theological  Seminary  of  the  Associate 
Reformed  Church,  under  the  superintendence  of  the  Rev.  Dr. 
John  M.  Mason,  and  was  licensed  for  the  Gospel  ministry  in 
1815  ;  shortly  after  which  he  was  married  to  Euphemia,  the 
eldest  daughter  of  his  instructor  in  theology.  In  1816  he  was 
called,  in  connection  with  the  Rev.  Paschal  N.  Strong,  to  the 
pastoral  charge  of  the  Collegiate  Reformed  Dutch  Church  in 
this  city.  Before  ten  years  had  elapsed,  the  gifted  Strong  was 
summoned  to  the  sanctuary  above,  leaving  behind  him  a  tra- 
ditional reputation  (for  he  seems  to  have  published  little  or 
nothing)  of  the  most  exalted  character.  His  fellow-laborer 
was  spared  for  more  than  four  times  that  period ;  during  all 
which  time  he  ministered,  with  a  fidelity  and  zeal  quite  un- 


106 

surpassed,  in  all  the  functions  of  his  holy  office.  Once,  about 
the  year  1827,  he  spent  the  winter  months  in  St.  Croix,  and  in 
1849  he  made  a  short  tour  in  Great  Britain  and  the  adjacent 
parts  of  the  Continent.  With  these  exceptions,  both  of  which 
were  rendered  necessary  by  the  state  of  his  health  at  the  time, 
he  was  always  found  at  his  post,  doing  the  Master's  will  to  the 
best  of  his  ability.  To  the  last  he  filled  his  own  place  in  the 
pulpit,  and  never  was  seen  there  without  careful  and  adequate 
preparation.  Indeed,  of  late  years  the  increased  animation  in 
both  the  matter  and  manner  of  his  pulpit  eiforts,  was  a  theme 
of  common  remark  among  his  hearers. 

But  it  was  in  the  other  spheres  of  a  Gospel  minister's  work 
that  his  excellencies  were  most  obvious  and  striking.  As  a 
counsellor  in  church  courts,  both  higher  and  lower;  as 
a  consoler  of  the  sick,  the  bereaved,  and  the  tempted  ;  as  a 
guide  to  hiquiring  souls,  as  an  interpreter  of  dark  passages  in 
Christian  experience,  his  skill,  tenderness,  assiduity,  and  pa- 
tience were  unequalled.  His  appearance,  his  manner,  the 
very  tones  of  his  voice,  seemed  to  fall  soothingly  and  per- 
suasively upon  all  who  came  within  their  reach.  His  own 
people,  and  multitudes  of  others,  who  spontaneously  sought  his 
wise  counsel,  feel  by  their  present  privation  the  greatness  of  the 
blessing  which  he  was  to  them ;  while  among  his  younger 
ministerial  brethren,  Dr.  Knox  was  familiarly  known  as  "  the 
Model  Pastor."  Yet  although  he  was  thus  faithful  and 
laborious  in  his  duties  as  the  senior  pastor  of  the  largest  body 
of  communicants  in  this  city,  this  was  very  far  from  being  the 
only  field  of  his  Christian  activity. 

Successive  calls  w^ere  made  upon  him  from  outside  institu- 
tions, until  he  came  to  be,  as  he  was  at  the  time  of  his  death. 

Chairman  of  the  American  Tract  Society's  Committee  on 
Publication. 

President  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  Columbia  College. 

President  of  the  Trustees  of  Leake  and  Watts'  Orphan 
Asylum. 

Director  of  the  Board  of  Corporation  of  the  Keformed  Pro- 
testant Dutch  Church. 

Trustee  of  Kutgers  College,  ISTew-Jersey. 

Trustee  of  the  College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons. 


107 

President  of  the  Board  of  Education  of  the  Eeformed  Dutch 
Church. 

President  of  the  Sabbath-School  Union  of  the  Eeformed 
Dutch  Church. 

Most  of  these  official  positions  were  such  as  demanded  mucli 
time,  pains,  and  thought ;  yet  he  never  came  short.  Always 
prompt,  punctual,  courteous,  and  faithful,  he  was  a  most 
efficient  co-laborer  in  every  one  of  these  important  relations. 
Yet  none  of  them  was  allowed  to  trench  upon  the  time  due  to 
study,  or  to  the  wants  of  his  immense  parochial  charge.  It  is 
to  be  remembered  too,  that  all  this  service  was  gratuitous. 
Not  a  farthing,  directly  or  indirectly,  reached  his  hand  because 
of  these  posts.  His  labors  in  them  were  labors  of  love.  No 
wonder  that  the  death  of  such  a  man  is  felt  to  be  a  great  pub- 
lic loss. 

During  his  ministerial  life,  Dr.  Knox  was  contemporary  with 
eight  colleagues,  namely :  Drs.  Kuypers,  Schureman,  Mille- 
doler,  Strong,  Brownlee,  De  Witt,  Yermilye,  Chambers,  four 
of  whom  preceded  him  to  the  heavenly  rest.  With  all  of 
them  he  lived  in  uninterrupted  harmony  from  first  to  last ;  and 
by  none  of  all  his  kindred  and  friends  is  his  loss  more  deeply 
regretted,  or  his  memory  more  tenderly  cherished,  than  by  his 
survivors  in  the  ministry  of  the  Collegiate  Church. 


From  the  Neic-Yorh  Courier  and  Enquirer. 

THE    REV.    JOHN    KNOX. 

One  week  since  there  was  seated  in  one  of  the  Eeformed 
Dutch  Churches  in  this  city,  a  gentleman,  himself  an  old 
citizen,  who  nearly  half  a  century  since  had  heard  the  first 
sermon  preached  in  this  city  by  the  Eev.  John  Knox,  then  a 
young  minister,  coming  from  Pennsylvania  to  begin  a  long 
career  of  "  gentleness,  goodness,  and  faith" — to  walk  the  ways 
of  this  great  city  in  all  rectitude  and  right.  It  was  the  lot  of 
this  gentleman  to  hear  Dr.  Knox's  last  sermon,  as  he  had  liis 
first.  The  life  of  the  good  man  was  suddenly  closed,  and  the 
church  of  which  he  was  the  senior  pastor  is  to-day  in  mourning 
for  the  event  which  came  like  the  mysterious  cloud  of  old — 
brio^htness  to  him  and  shadow  to  them. 


108 

The  death  of  Dr.  Knox  breaks  that  chain  of  three,  whose 
living  link  was  so  bright — so  wound  around  the  life-long  as- 
sociations of  the  Episcopal,  the  Presbyterian,  and  the  Dutch 
churches  of  this  city. 

To  Dr.  Knox,  and  Dr.  Berrian,  and  Dr.  Spring  it  had  been 
given  to  dwell  among  one  people,  minister  to  the  heart  of 
generation  after  generation  who  came  to  one  place  to  worship ; 
or,  if  the  place  changed,  it  was  only  because  the  outer  world 
grew  too  loud  for  the  calmer  utterances  of  the  pure  faith  they 
disclosed,  and  the  scene  was  changed,  but  the  Church  and  the 
truth  remained. 

The  men  who  came  to  worship  in  the  old  Middle  Dutch,  in 
Trinity,  and  in  the  Old  Brick,  when  as  young  men  these  three 
clergymen  took  upon  them  their  intensely  important  duties, 
are  in  the  vaults  of  the  churches  or  the  graves  of  the  cemeteries. 
The  children  that  wondered  at  the  novelty  of  their  induc- 
tion, have — those  who  survive — left  behind  the  best  of  their 
years,  and  the  greater  part  have  gathered  to  the  dead. 

All  that  can  change  a  young  and  springing  city,  like  our 
own,  has  been  before  the  eyes  of  these  three  venerable  men. 
They  have  learned  all  that  life  can  teach  them  as  a  commentary 
on  the  book  of  truth  before  them,  and  now  their  bond  of  com- 
panionship is  broken.  The  pastor  of  the  oldest  church,  goes 
first  of  the  three. 

Dr.  Knox  was  a  steadfast,  gentle,  moderate  man,  very 
earnest  in  his  work ;  of  a  solemnity  of  manner  that  made  his 
words  by  their  very  sound  like  the  messages  of  another  world  ; 
a  pastor  who  mingled  for  so  many  years  with  his  people  at 
their  homes  as  well  as  in  the  public  worship  ;  who  was 
cognizant  and  companion  of  their  happiness  and  their  sorrows, 
and  who  in  all  these  years,  while  he  was  compelled  often  to  be 
in  the  knot  of  the  intricacies  of  the  web  of  family  affairs, 
knew  how  to  walk  the  narrow  golden  line  of  the  Christian 
friend  that  never  forgot  to  be  wise  while  he  was  sympathizing. 

The  Fathers  of  the  Church  were  his  familiar  friends.  He 
knew  Livingston  and  Linn,  and  learned  from  their  exalted 
school  the  dignity  and  prudence  which  made  his  fraternity 
with  those  by  whose  side  he  stood  on  the  very  last  Sabbath  of 
his  life,  one  of  uninterrupted  brotherhood.  De  Witt,  Yer- 
milye,  Chambers  felt  in  their  inmost  heart  that  they  possessed 


109 

in  their  senior  a  counsellor  who  had  learned  of  the  pious  dead 
the  lesson  of  love  to  the  living. 

There  are  memories  connected  with  Dr.  Knox's  care  and 
solicitude  for  these  many  years  over  the  orphans  of  John  G. 
Leake's  blessed  endowment,  that  need  no  human  annals. 
Theirs  is  the  language  that  is  graven  so  that  the  inscription 
shall  remain  on  the  "  new  earth." 


THE    REV.  JOHN    KNOX,  D.D. 

To  the  Editors  of  the  New  -  York  Exipress : 

The  death  of  Dr.  Knox,  who  for  more  than  forty  years  has 
exercised  the  ministry  of  the  Gospel  in  the  Collegiate  Re- 
formed Dutch  Church  of  this  city,  and  who,  by  his  consistent 
and  exemplary  Christian  character  and  course,  and  by  the 
wise,  diligent,  and  successful  discharge  of  the  many  trusts 
committed  to  him  in  the  Church  and  in  the  community,  had 
gained  universal  respect  and  affection,  has  made  a  deep  im- 
pression among  our  citizens.  This  impression  has  been  deep- 
ened by  the  suddenness  and  other  circumstances  of  his  deatli. 
Though  he  had  attained  the  age  of  sixty-eight  years,  he  was 
in  the  enjoyment  of  good  health — for  three  or  four  years  past 
was  more  vigorous  than  at  previous  periods. 

Last  Tuesday,  he  devoted  the  day  to  pastoral  visits.  Ee- 
turning  home  about  four  o'clock,  he  passed  into  the  piazza 
back  of  the  house,  inclosed  by  blinds.  It  is  supposed  that, 
the  blinds  being  opened,  he  by  some  misstep  lost  his  balance, 
and  was  thrown  over  headlong  on  the  pavement  of  the  yard, 
falling  with  great  force  on  the  part  of  his  head  adjacent  to  his 
temple.  He  was  taken  up  motionless  and  unconscious,  and 
remained  so  until  his  death,  which  occurred  about  eight  o'clock 
last  Friday  evening. 

Dr.  Knox  was  one  of  the  oldest  settled  pastors  in  this  city. 
In  1816,  he  was  called  as  one  of  the  pastors  of  the  Collegiate 
Reformed  Dutch  Church,  and  was  installed  in  the  month  of 
July  of  that  year.  From  that  time  till  the  day  of  the  casualty 
which  terminated  his  life,  he  prosecuted  his  ministry  with 
unremitted  industry  and  success.     Few  clergymen  have  been 


110 

as  constant  in  the  discharge  of  the  duties  of  the  pulpit,  whe- 
ther upon  tlie  Sabbath  or  in  the  week-day  service. 

The  fulfillment  of  the  work  to  which  he  was  devoted,  was 
the  passion  of  his  life.  He  never  spared  himself.  Not  only 
did  he  preach  constantly,  but  in  pastoral  labors  he  was  an  ex- 
ample of  assiduous,  pains-taking  perseverance ;  so  that  his 
influence  upon  the  people  of  his  charge,  and  upon  the  com- 
munity, always  salutary  in  an  eminent  degree,  was  never  so 
great  as  upon  the  day  when  his  life  and  labors  were  closed. 
His  preaching  was  instructive,  evangelical,  and  practical.  He 
possessed  a  sound,  practical  judgment,  which  made  him  a 
wise  and  valuable  counsellor  and  successful  peacemaker.  His 
devotedly  pious  and  sympathetic  spirit  rendered  him  a  pecu- 
liarly acceptable  visitor  in  the  sick-room,  in  the  house  ot 
mourning,  and  in  seasons  of  affliction.  By  the  series  of  col- 
leagues with  whom  he  was  associated  during  his  long  minis- 
try, he  was  ever  held  in  strong  esteem  and  affection,  and  not 
ajar  of  feeling  occurred  in  their  relations  to  each  other.  His 
manners  were  dignified  and  courteous,  blended  with  kindness. 
His  sincerity  and  uprightness  of  spirit  and  conduct  were 
known  and  read  of  all  men.  Besides  the  heavy  duties  de- 
volving upon  him  in  his  ministerial  and  pastoral  capacity,  he 
discharged  important  trusts  committed  to  him  by  the  General 
Synod,  with  the  view  of  promoting  the  interests  of  the  de- 
nomination at  large,  with  efficiency ;  and  his  service  in  this 
respect  will  long  be  remembered  by  them.  He  dwelt  in 
friendly  intercourse  with  ministers  and  Christians  of  other  de- 
nominations, and  cordially  cooperated  with  every  effort  to 
advance  the  kingdom  of  Christ  and  the  welfare  of  man. 

At  the  formation  of  the  American  Tract  Society  in  1825, 
he  was  chosen  a  member  of  its  Publishing  Committee,  and 
has  remained  such  during  its  whole  course ;  and  since  the 
death  of  Dr.  Milnor,  he  has  been  its  Chairman.  He  has  ren- 
dered important  services  as  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Trus- 
tees of  the  Leake  and  Watts'  Orphan  Asylum. 

At  the  time  of  his  death,  he  was  Chairman  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees  of  Columbia  College ;  and,  in  addition  to  being  a 
prominent  member  of  the  various  Boards  of  his  own  Church, 
was  connected  with  nearly  all  the  religious  and  benevolent 
associations  of  the  day. 


Ill 

To  the  last  day  of  liis  life,  the  Eev.  Dr.  Knox  was  system- 
atically devoted  to  useful  and  varied  employments.  He  thus 
gained  the  profound  respect  of  the  community  at  large,  the 
expression  of  which  has  been  drawn  forth  impressively  during 
his  brief  illness,  and  at  his  death.  Shortly  after  his  settlement 
in  the  Collegiate  Church,  he  married  the  eldest  daughter  of 
the  Eev.  John  Mason,  D.D.,  a  lady  of  great  excellence,  who 
was  truly  in  every  respect  a  helpmeet.  She  died  two  or  three 
years  ago.  The  large  fiimily  whom  they  reared  have  the  pre- 
cious legacy  of  their  prayers,  instructions,  and  example. 


CHAUCER'S    PASTOB. 

Wide  was  his  cure ;  the  houses  far  asunder, 
Yet  never  failed  he  for  rain  or  thunder, 
Whenever  sickness  or  mischance  might  call, 
The  most  remote  to  visit,  great  or  small ; 
And  staff  in  hand,  on  foot  the  storm  to  brave, 
This  noble  ensample  to  his  flock  he  gave. 
Though  holy  in  himself  and  virtuous, 
He  still  to  sinful  men  was  mild  and  piteous ; 
Not  of  reproach,  imperious  or  malign, 
But  in  his  teachings  soothing  and  benign. 
To  draw  them  on  to  heaven,  by  reason  fair 
And  good  example,  was  his  daily  care. 

Our  many  readers  who  knew  the  late  Dr.  Knox  will  be 
gratified  in  tracing  the  exact  likeness  of  the  foregoing  pen- 
picture,  made  centuries  ago,  to  this  exemplary  man  of  God. 
The  portrait  will  bear  studying  for  its  close  resemblance. 
Every  line  has  its  counterpart  in  reality,  nor  need  any  abate- 
ment be  made  on  the  score  of  the  difierence  between  ancient 
times  and  modern.  The  "  wide  cure,"  "  houses  far  apart,'' 
"  never  failed,''  "  staff  in  hand,"  "  on  foot,"  "  holy  in  himself," 
"  to  sinful  men  mild,"  "  teachings  soothing,"  "  draw  to  heaven," 
"  good  example,"  "  daily  care" — had  the  father  of  English 
poetry  been  describing  Dr.  Knox,  he  could  not  have  better 
set  forth  him  who  will  long  be  known  as  a  Model  Pastor. — 
Christian  Intelligencer. 


APPENDIX 


I 


APPEN^DIX 


Note  A. 

The  tender  aifection,  with  which  Dr.  Knox  cherished  in  his 
heart  of  hearts  the  memory  of  his  departed  fathers,  was  most 
beautifully  and  impressively  shown  upon  the  occasion  of  the  bap- 
tism of  his  grandson,  who  bears  the  family  name,  Samuel.  Those 
who  were  present  (and  they  were  many)  on  the  occasion,  wdll  not 
forget  the  tremulous  tones  of  the  venerable  officiator,  as  he  spoke 
of  the  name  which  he  was  about  to  name  upon  his  infant  grand- 
child in  the  holy  sacrament  of  baptism.  His  memory  was  all  alive 
with  the  most  fond  reminiscences  of  the  past,  and  he  could  scarce- 
ly give  them  utterance.  "  This  child,"  said  he,  "  belongs  to  the 
fifth  generation  of  my  family,  with  whom  I  have  been  associated 
in  the  fondest  affections  of  my  heart,  who  have  borne  the  name 
about  to  be  named  upon  him.  Of  these,  the  individuals  of  three 
generations  lived  and  died  in  the  faith  of  the  Gospel,  and  I  do  not 
doubt  are  now  in  that  presence  where  there  is  fullness  of  joy  and 
pleasures  for  evermore.  The  first — how  well  I  remember  that 
holy  man,  my  beloved  grandfather !  How  often  have  I  lain  in  his 
bosom,  how  often  have  I  been  the  subject  of  his  prayers,  and  how 
I  loved  him  !  The  second,  my  father,  a  man  of  God — of  intelli- 
gent, earnest,  devoted  piety — to  his  care,  to  his  counsels,  to  his 
instructions,  how  deeply  am  I  indebted!  He  sleeps  —  having 
served  his  generation,  and  served  it  well,  by  the  will  of  God  he 
fell  asleep  in  Jesus.  To  these  holy  men,  to  their  assiduous  and 
self-denying  labors  and  prayers  in  my  behalf,  under  God,  I  owe 
all  that  a  kind  Providence  has  given  me,  of  position  in  life,  and 
opportunities  of  usefulness — yes,  and  my  hope  of  heaven  !  Their 
memory  is  precious  and  blessed,  and  can  not  die  within  me  wliile 
my  heart  shall  beat.  Nor  can  his,  my  faithful,  loving  brother, 
whose  sun  went  down  in  its  meridian.  He,  too,  dwells  in  the 
home  of  the  saved,  where  the  inhabitants  shall  never  say :  '  I  am 


116 

sick.'  Oh  !  may  all  the  succeeding  generations  be  followers  o^ 
them,  in  as  far  as  they  followed  Christ.  This,  this  is  my  heart's 
desire  and  prayer  to  God,  that  at  last  we  all  may  be  gathered  to- 
gether there,  where  there  is  no  going  out  forever.  God  grant  it, 
for  his  name's  sake."  The  effect  produced  by  this  address,  (of 
which  the  above  is  the  faintest  outline,)  as  uttered  by  Dr.  Knox, 
was  most  salutary  and  impressive.  All  felt  that  religion  was  a 
powerful  reality,  and  that  the  venerable  speaker  was  a  beautiful 
illustration  of  the  influence  of  divine  grace  in  elevating  and  refin- 
ing the  most  noble  and  generous  of  human  qualities. 

Note  B. 

At  the  end  of  the  year  after  his  licensure  by  the  Presbytery, 
Mr.  Knox  received  calls  from  the  following  churches  in  the  Asso- 
ciate Reformed  communion,  namely :  the  church  near  Milton,  in 
Pennsylvania  ;  the  church  in  Spruce  street,  Philadelphia ;  and  the 
church  in  Newburgh,  New- York.  Besides  these,  the  Presbytery 
put  into  his  hands  calls  from  the  Middle  Dutch  Church  in  Albany, 
New- York,  and  the  Collegiate  Church  in  New-York  City. 

Note  C. 

In  his  sermon  occasioned  by  the  death  of  Mrs.  Knox,  the  Rev. 
Dr.  McElroy,  who  had  known  her  long  and  well,  says  :  "  Seldom 
is  so  much  intellect,  education,  grace,  and  loveliness  combined  in 
a  single  character ;  and  more  seldom  still  have  we  an  opportunity 
of  contemplating  a  character  so  eminently  consistent  and  harmo- 
nious in  all  its  parts.     It  was  simple,  dignified,  transparent." 

In  the  commencement  of  Dr.  Knox's  will,  bearing  date  in  June, 
1857,  the  following  sentences  are  found:  "With  all  affectionate 
earnestness,  I  commend  my  beloved  children  to  the  providence 
and  grace  of  God,  and  charge  them  that  they  cultivate  the  fear 
of  God,  live  in  mutual  love  and  harmony,  and,  as  ability  and  ne- 
cessity shall  indicate,  be  helpful  to  each  other.  I  charge  them 
also  ever  to  remember  and  strive  to  imitate  the  eminently  pure, 
exalted,  and  endearing  exemplification  of  the  graces  and  virtues 
of  the  spirit  which  they  all  have  seen  and  known  in  their  blessed 
mother." 

"  They  were  beautiful  in  their  lives,  and  in  their  deaths  were 
not  (long)  divided." 


117 


Note  D. 

The  Rev.  Professor  Huntington,  of  the  Auburn  Theological 
Seminary,  has  written  as  follows  to  the  family  of  Dr.  Knox.  We 
give  the  extracts  from  his  letter,  as  an  admirable  summing  up  of 
the  i^ersonal  character  of  the  venerated  dead.  "  It  is  now  nearly 
twenty  years  since  all  my  associations  with  the  city  of  New- York 
have  clustered  in  your  father's  house,  and  around  your  father's 
person.  And  through  all  that  time — with  a  single  comparatively 
brief  interval  of  precarious  health — he  has  appeared  to  me  hardly 
to  change  ;  unless,  indeed,  to  grow  more  vigorous,  efficient,  use- 
ful, and  cheerful,  as  he  grew  more  patriarchal.  When  I  saw  him 
in  May  last,  he  was  perfectly  well,  and  bade  fair  to  continue  long 
in  active  service.  All  tidings  from  him  since  have  indorsed  the 
same  promise.  Xo  healthy  child,  no  man  in  the  full  strength  of 
middle  life,  was  ever  cut  down  more  unexpectedly.  He  was  the 
central  figure  in  all  my  views  and  memories  of  your  great  city. 
I  can  not  describe  to  you  my  loss  for  a  regulating,  controlling  ob- 
ject, when  I  think  of  Xew-York,  without  thinking  of  him  as  still 
living,  moving,  acting  in  it,  of  all  its  great  interests  tnagna  pars. 

"  Dr.  Knox  was  preeminently  adapted  to  fill  a  large  i)lace  in  his 
day  and  generation.  His  noble,  majestic  form  never  disappointed 
the  expectations  which  it  could  not  fail  to  raise.  The  earthly 
house  and  the  immortal  tenant  w^ere  w^ell  matched.  He  was  born 
to  exert  a  commanding  influence.  He  was  conseci'ated  to  exert  a 
commanding  influence  for  good.  His  comprehensive  mind  spurned 
all  narrow,  contracted,  mean,  petty,  and  flxlse  views  of  any  sub- 
ject to  which  his  attention  was  directed.  He  saw  farther  than 
most  men  ;  and  as  far  as  he  saw,  he  saw  clearly,  and  what  he  saw 
he  spake,  '  without  partiality  and  without  hypocrisy.'  Then,  too, 
his  great  heart  was  full  of  generous  sympathies,  which  forbade 
him  to  yield  his  judgment  to  the  special  pleading  of  any  ex  parte 
advocate  of  selflshness  and  injustice.  For  these  and  similar  rea- 
sons, his  wisdom  became  the  characteristic  by  w^hich  he  was  best 
known  to  the  world — the  secret  of  his  power  in  the  pulpit,  and  in 
pastoral  visitation,  over  the  understanding  and  hearts  and  con- 
sciences of  his  parishioners,  a  power  which  a  long  ministerial  life 
but  served  to  increase,  and  which  will  continue  to  be  felt  when  all 
the  popular  eloquence  of  the  times  shall  be  forgotten  ;  the  secret, 
too,  of  his  election  to  so  many  important  offices  in  the  benevolent 
societies  and  philanthropic  and  educational  institutions  of  his  age, 
offices  which,  however  arduous  and  thankless  the  labors  devolved 


118 

upon  him  in  them,  he  could  not  be  permitted,  for  any  plea  of  in- 
creasing years,  to  resign ;  and  the  secret,  moreover,  of  the  innu- 
merable applications  to  him,  in  person  and  by  letter,  for  private 
advice,  from  kindred  and  connections  near  and  remote  ;  from 
members  of  his  own  congregation,  and  his  fellow-citizens  gen- 
erally ;  from  his  ministerial  brethren  ;  from  strangers  and  foreign- 
ers ;  from  high  life,  middle  life,  and  low  life,  thronging  his  house, 
interrupting  him  at  his  meals,  his  devotions,  and  his  studies,  and 
burdening  him  with  cares  enough  to  crush  any  ordinary  man, 
though,  truth  to  say,  he  seemed  to  thrive  under  them. 

"  For,  wdth  all  the  public  responsibilities  which  his  sound  judg- 
ment and  discretion  brought  upon  him,  he  found  so  much  time  for 
the  enjoyment  and  duties  of  social  life,  that  he  was  best  know-n 
throughout  the  large  circle  of  his  family  and  friends  for  his 
loann  affection^  constant  and  kindly  solicitude^  and  bountifid  hos- 
pitcdity.  Who  that  ever  witnessed,  can  forget  how  his  imposing 
presence  was  relieved  by  the  beautiful  combination  in  his  manners 
of  dignity,  courtesy,  affability,  and  cordiality  ?  His  hearty  w^el- 
come  was  sustained  by  his  unwearied  attentions  to  his  guests,  till 
his  farewell  left  them  more  his  admirers  than  ever.  Among  the 
multitudes  entitled  to  his  regards,  or  admitted  to  his  confidence 
and  favor,  not  one,  in  disappointment,  perplexity,  or  sorrow,  ever 
applied  to  him  for  assistance,  counsel,  or  consolation  in  vain. 
Many  a  time  has  he  volunteered  his  thoughtfulness  for  them,  and, 
when  they  least  expected  it,  has  soothed  their  griefs,  guided  them 
through  their  difficulties,  and  opened  to  them  new  avenues  of  use- 
fulness and  prosperity.  And  ever  have  they  found  him  most 
deeply  interested  in,  and  most  ready  to  promote,  their  spiritual 
and  eternal  welfare.  He  loatched  for  their  souls.  If  any  man 
ever  had  a  right  to  adopt  the  words  of  'the  greatest  of  all  the 
men  of  the  East,'  it  w^as  Dr.  Knox :  '  When  the  ear  heard  me, 
then  it  blessed  me  ;  and  when  the  eye  saw  me,  it  gave  witness  to 
me :  because  I  delivered  the  poor  that  cried,  and  the  fatherless^ 
and  him  that  had  none  to  help  him.  The  blessing  of  him  that 
was  ready  to  perish  came  upon  me,  and  I  caused  the  widow^s 
heart  to  sing  for  joy.  I  was  eyes  to  the  blind,  and  feet  w^as  I  to 
the  lame.  I  was  a  father  to  the  poor,  and  the  cause  which  I 
knew  not  I  searched  out.  Unto  me  men  gave  ear,  and  waited, 
and  hept  silence  at  my  counsel.  I  chose  out  their  ivay,  a7id  sat 
chief  and  dwelt  as  a  king  in  the  army,  as  one  that  comforteth  the 
mourners,"* " 


119 


Note  E. 

Dr.  Knox  had  always  a  strong  aversion  to  appear  in  print.  His 
published  discourses  are  therefore  few.  The  following-named  are 
all,  it  is  believed,  which  he  gave  to  the  public.  The  majority  of 
them  were  prepared  with  no  thought  of  publication,  and  all  of 
them  amid  the  many  pressing  calls  of  his  multiplied  engagements. 
They  are  therefore  examples  of  his  ordinary  ministrations. 

1.  The  Duty  axd  IS'ecessity  of  Searching  the  Scriptures. 
A  Discourse  delivered  in  the  Reformed  Dutch  Church  in  New- 
Brunswick,  September  3,  1823,  upon  the  occasion  of  the  Inaugur- 
ation of  the  Rev.  John  De  Witt,  A.M.,  as  Professor  of  Biblical 
Criticism  in  the  Theological  Seminary  of  the  Reformed  Protest- 
ant Dutch  Church.     "  Search  the  Scriptures."     John  5  :  39. 

2.  The  Death  of  the  Aged  Pious  a  Blessing.  A  Sermon 
occasioned  by  the  Death  of  the  Rev.  Gerardus  A.  Kuypers,  D.D. 
Preached  in  the  Middle  Dutch  Church,  June  7,  1833.  "Then 
Abraham  gave  uj)  the  ghost,  and  died  in  a  good  old  age,  an  old 
man,  and  full  of  years  :  and  was  gathered  to  his  people."  Gene- 
sis 25  :  8. 

3.  Parental  Responsibility.  A  Discourse  delivered  in  the 
Middle  Dutch  Church,  November,  1834.  "  For  I  have  told  him, 
that  I  will  judge  his  house  forever,  for  the  iniquity  which  he 
knoweth ;  because  his  sons  made  themselves  vile,  and  he  re- 
strained them  not."     1  Samuel  3:13. 

4.  Parental  Solicitude.  A  Discourse  delivered  in  the  jMid- 
dle  Dutch  Church,  December,  1834.  "  Oh !  that  Ishmael  might  live 
before  thee  !"     Genesis  IV  :  18. 

5.  Comfort  in  Sorrow.  A  Discourse  occasioned  by  the  Death 
of  Mrs.  Marianne  F.  McElroy,  wife  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  McElroy, 
Pastor  of  the  Scotch  Presbyterian  Church  in  Cedar  street,  Xew- 
York.  Delivered  on  Sabbath  morning,  November  27, 1836.  "But 
I  would  not  have  you  to  be  ignorant,  brethren,  concerning  them 
who  are  asleep,  that  ye  sorrow  not  even  as  others  who  have  no 
hope.  For  if  we  believe  that  Jesus  died  and  rose  again,  even  so 
them  also  which  sleep  in  Jesus  will  God  bring  with  him."  1  Thes- 
salonians  4  :  13,  14. 

6.  Preparation  for  Death.  A  Sermon  on  the  occasion  of 
the  Death  of  Lieutenant-Colonel  Alexander  Ramsay  Thompson, 
of  the  U.  S.  Army,  who  was  killed  in  battle  with  the  Indians,  at 
Okee-cho-bee,  Florida,  December   25,   1837.     Delivered   in   the 


120 

Middle  Dutch  Church,  February  11,  1838.  "Therefore  be  ye 
also  ready  ;  for  in  such  an  hour  as  ye  think  not,  the  Son  of  man 
cometh."     Matthew  24  :  44. 

7.  The  Chuech  Gloeious.  A  Discourse  delivered  on  the  oc- 
casion of  the  opening  for  divine  worship)  of  the  building  erected 
by  the  Consistory  of  the  Reformed  Protestant  Dutch  Church  of 
the  City  of  New- York,  on  the  corner  of  Fourth  street  and  Lafay- 
ette Place,  May  9,  1839.  "And  I  will  make  the  place  of  my  feet 
glorious."     Isaiah  60  :  13. 

8.  The  Good  and  Faithful  Servant.  A  Discourse  delivered 
in  the  Reformed  Dutch  Church  on  Lafayette  Place,  March  11, 
1849,  on  occasion  of  the  death  of  the  Rev.  William  Cahoone. 
"  His  lord  said  unto  him,  Well  done,  thou  good  and  faithful  serv- 
ant ;  thou  hast  been  faithful  over  a  few  things,  I  will  make  thee 
ruler  over  many  things :  enter  thou  into  the  joy  of  thy  lord." 
Matthew  25  :  21. 

9.  The  Character  and  End  of  the  Perfect  and  Upright. 
A  Discourse  delivered  in  the  Middle  Dutch  Church,  (Lafayette 
Place,)  June  28,  1857,  on  the  occasion  of  the  death  of  John  Neil- 
son,  M.D.  "  Mark  the  perfect  man,  and  behold  the  upright ;  for 
the  end  of  that  man  is  peace."     Psalm  37  :  37. 

Besides  these  published  sermons,  Dr.  Knox  furnished,  from  time 
to  time,  to  the  public  papers,  a  number  of  addresses  delivered  by 
him  on  various  occasions  of  general  interest.  He  was  also  the 
author  of  several  tracts,  which  have  had  large  circulation  through 
the  instrumentality  of  the  American  Tract  Society. 

His  time  generally,  however,  was  too  fully  occupied  with  the 
cares  of  his  numerous  positions  of  responsibility  and  labor,  to 
afford  him  leisure  for  prej^aration  for  the  press. 


Note  F. 

The  visit  of  Dr.  Knox  to  Europe,  in  the  year  1849,  introduced 
him  to  the  acquaintance  and  friendship  of  some  of  the  most  dis- 
tinguished Christian  men  of  Great  Britain  and  the  Continent, 
upon  whom  he  produced  the  same  favorable  impression  which, 
during  all  his  life,  he  produced  at  home.  Since  his  death,  the 
venerable  Dr.  Raffles,  of  Liverpool,  has  written  :  "  The  little  that 
I  was  privileged  to  see  of  the  excellent  Dr.  Knox,  attached  me 
strongly  to  him.  From  that  little,  I  feel  assured  that  all  that  was 
said  of  him  on  the  occasion  of  his  funeral,  is  true.     I  never  met 


121 

with  a  man  who  more  thoroughly  combined  the  polish  of  the  gen- 
tleman with  the  piety  of  the  Christian ;  and  I  can  perfectly  under- 
stand how  deeply  and  painfully  the  void  occasioned  by  the  re- 
moval of  such  a  man  must  be  felt  by  the  family  to  which  he  was 
endeared,  and  the  community  he  so  much  benefited  and  adorned." 
Other  letters  of  the  same  character  have  been  received  by  the 
family,  from  persons  of  high  distinction  in  Great  Britain. 

Note  G. 

At  the  anniversary  of  the  American  Tract  Society  in  May, 
1845,  Dr.  Knox  made  the  following  remarks  relative  to  the  loss 
sustained  by  the  Society,  the  Church,  and  the  community  in  the 
death  of  the  devoted  Rev.  Dr.  Milnor.  No  one  acquainted  with 
the  feelings  of  the  community,  when  it  was  announced  that  Dr. 
Knox  was  dead,  no  one  who  witnessed  the  demonstration  at  his 
funeral,  can  fail  to  remark  how  his  words,  so  true  in  1845  of  the 
lamented  Milnor,  became  in  1858  as  emphatically  true  of  himself. 

"  With  humble  submission  to  a  wise  and  holy  Providence,  we 
nevertheless  deplore  our  loss,  in  the  removal  by  death  of  him 
whose  devoted  and  faithful  labors  as  Chairman  of  the  Publishing 
and  Executive  Committees  have  been  identified  with  the  prosper- 
ity of  the  Society  from  the  time  of  its  formation.  This  venerated 
and  beloved  man  of  God  is  no  longer  with  us.  God  has  taken 
him.     We  shall  see  his  face  no  more. 

"  In  the  mellowed  but  undecayed  ripeness  and  richness  of  his 
powers,  the  unabated  activity  of  his  efforts,  and  the  zenith  of  his 
usefulness,  he  has  been  taken  from  us  ;  and,  although  it  is  not  al- 
ways given  to  men  in  pubHc  stations,  even  the  gifted,  the  useful, 
and  the  good,  whether  in  political,  civil,  or  professional  life,  to 
carry  with  them  into  the  evening  of  their  days  a  lustre  un dimmed 
and  undiminished,  he  has  passed  to  the  grave  as  full  of  honors  as 
he  Avas  full  of  days. 

"Of  liberal  and  catholic  spirit  and  enlarged  philanthropy,  Di-. 
Milnor  was  associated  with  every  great  enterprise  of  Christi:!n 
benevolence  ;  and,  notwithstanding  his  own  unobtrusive  modesty, 
a  foremost  place  in  the  ranks  of  well-doing  was  sj^ontaneously  and 
usually  assigned  to  him  by  his  compeers. 

"  In  this  Society,  his  station,  from  the  commencement,  was  that 
of  chief  responsibility  and  toil.  By  a  ready  facility,  habitual  sys- 
tem, and  self-denying  diligence,  he  was  able  to  perform,  and  to 
perform  promptly,  seasonably,  and  well,  a  vast  amount  of  labor. 


122 

"  Look  over  the  scene  of  his  domestic  duties,  his  pastoral  toils, 
his  connection  with  the  institutions  of  his  own  Church,  and  the 
other  great  meliorating  institutions,  civil  and  religious,  which 
adorn  our  city  :  call  to  mind  the  claims  upon  his  time  and  atten- 
tion, and  the  interruptions  incident  to  his  position ;  his  fidelity, 
piety,  purity,  gentleness,  urbanity ;  the  degree  and  the  kind  ol 
influence  pervading  this  w^ide  sphere  emanating  from  his  single 
person — and  you  perceive  why  it  w^as  that  a  sob  so  deep  and  con- 
vulsive burst  from  the  heart  of  the  community  when  the  tidings 
of  his  death  fell  upon  its  ear. 

"  Mr.  President,  I  have  seen  a  Limngston  laid  in  the  grave,  a 
3Iason^  a  3PLeod^  a  Momeyn^  a  Hohart^  and  others  illustrious 
in  their  day,  burning  and  shining  lights,  men  deeply  endeared,  of 
high  intellect  and  renown,  and  of  commanding  influence  ;  and  I 
have  received  impressions  not  to  be  efiaced.  Were  it  not  for  the 
revelation  to  Abraham,  ^I  am  the  Almighty  God^  the  All-svffi- 
dent^  I  should  have  almost  felt  respecting  some  of  these,  that  the 
exigencies  of  a  sinful  and  disordered  generation  could  not  dis- 
pense with  their  presence.  And  yet  scarcely  in  any  case  have  I 
seen  the  fountains  of  human  feeling  more  deeply  moved,  than 
when  the  remains  of  our  beloved  Milnor  were  committed  to  the 
earth — when  talent  and  piety  and  eloquence  poured  out  their  tri- 
bute to  his  worth,  and  the  hearts  of  that  great  assembly  of  the 
rich  and  the  poor,  the  lofty  and  the  lowly,  the  wise  and  the  sim- 
ple, dissolved,  and  with  a  subdued  murmur  flowed  together  in  the 
sympathy  of  grief.  There  is  nothing  in  all  the  forms  of  pride  and 
worldliness  that  can  bear  a  tribute  like  this." 


A   FAINT   TRIBUTE   TO   THE    MEMORY   OF 

THE     REV.    JOHN    KNOX,    D.U., 

SENIOR   PASTOR   OF   THE    COLLEGIATE   REFORMED   DUTCH    CHURCH. 

"Behold  an  Israelite  indeed!'^ 


Ere  his  path  of  life  grew  dreary, 

Or  his  step  was  slow, 
Ere  his  heart  was  worn  or  weary, 

With  his  work  below, 
The  crown  of  righteousness  was  ready 

To  adorn  his  brow. 

In  a  moment  he  departed 

To  his  heavenly  rest ; 
We,  the  mourners,  stricken-hearted, 

Knoio  that  he  is  blest, 
Know  that  with  one  step  he  mounted 

To  his  Saviour's  breast. 

Yet  ah !  yet  with  selfish  sorrow. 

We  his  loss  must  weep  ; 
Scarcely  dreaming  of  a  morrow 

When  regret  shall  sleep. 
Or  M'hen  we  shall  cease  to  miss  him 

In  time's  shadows  deep. 

Never  more  on  earth  to  meet  him. 

Oh !  how  sore  the  pain  ! 
Ne'er  with  human  tongue  to  greet  him 

'Mid  the  haunts  of  men ; 
Never,  never  more  to  meet  him 

On  this  earth  again  ! 


124 

His  holy  life  and  ministry 

A  seraph's  pen  might  write — 
Pure,  and  stainless,  and  harmonious, 

Even  passing  bright, 
As  a  jewel  set  in  glory, 

Shone  his  Christian  light : 

Standing  on  the  heights  of  Zion, 

On  Christ's  battle-tower, 
In  the  fullness  of  his  vigor, 

And  his  mental  power, 
Never  putting  off  his  armor 

Till  his  dying  hour. 

Suddenly  his  work  was  ended  ; 

'Twas  sufficient  here — 
He  was  summoned  to  a  service 

In  a  higher  sphere, 
And  the  pearly  gates  unfolded 

To  admit  him  there. 

By  the  golden  harps  of  angels, 

Welcomed  to  the  courts  above. 
And  with  songs  of  bright  evangels. 

Hailed  with  joy  and  sacred  love  ; 
Welcomed  by  the  saints  and  angels, 

Never  more  from  heaven  to  rove. 

Gentle,  modest,  unassuming. 

Was  his  course  on  earth  ; 
Seeking  no  parade  or  honors 

To  proclaim  his  worth  : 
Yet  the  world's  strong  testimonials 

Rush  spontaneous  forth. 

Like  the  waves  of  mighty  waters, 

Was  the  o'erflowing  crowd. 
Pressing  on  with  those  who  bore  him 

To  his  last  abode, 
Showing  how  revered,  lamented, 

Was  this  Man  of  God.  E.  Bogaut. 


LINES  ON  THE   DEATH  OF  DK.  KNOX, 


The  evening  shades  were  gathering  dark 
Around  a  well-spent  day ; 

Angels  unseen  were  chanting — hark  ! 
"Beloved,  come  away." 

He  knew  their  voices — quickly  flung 

The  lattice  open  wide  : 
A  solemn  requiem  was  sung, 

For  death  stood  by  his  side. 

Remorseless  Death  !  thou  mayst  rejoice  ; 

A  shining  mark  is  thine ; 
Mute  is  the  sympathetic  voice 

Whose  breathings  were  divine. 

'Twas  ordered  that  no  parting  scene 
Should  agonize  his  breast ; 

Nor  doubt,  nor  fear  should  flit  between 
Glad  visions  of  the  blest. 

And  now  the  great  eternal  chime 
Tolled  the  order — Soul,  depart ! 

Angels  thy  guide,  the  guard  of  time 
Sentinels  of  the  heart. 

From  Jordan's  river,  crowned  with  grace, 
The  saint  emerges  bright. 

To  meet  his  Saviour's  smiling  face, 
In  the  "  land  of  pure  delight." 

January  15,  1858.  A.  S. 


Princeton  Theological  Semmary-Spe. 


1    1012  01040  9375 


